


The Love of a Child

by JCapasso



Category: Lucifer (TV)
Genre: F/M, Post-Season/Series 04
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-18
Updated: 2020-02-23
Packaged: 2021-02-27 22:34:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 53
Words: 89,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22793320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JCapasso/pseuds/JCapasso
Summary: Lucifer's monotony after retaking the throne of hell is thrown into chaos by the arrival of a living human child, setting off a feeding frenzy for the demons and leading to a rebellion as he tries to save her.Warnings: Not too graphic torture of a child and God is a complete bastard.
Relationships: Amenadiel & Linda Martin (Lucifer TV), Chloe Decker/Lucifer Morningstar
Comments: 181
Kudos: 243





	1. Chapter 1

Lucifer appeared on his throne and looked out over his hated kingdom stewing about everything he’d had to leave behind. He knew that the demons would feel his return and gather at the base of the spire and he had until then to decide how to make an example of those who stood against him. If only he could keep his heart from breaking for long enough. He, more than most, knew that to show weakness here was to invite death, king or not. 

It took about an hour before he could sense all of the demons gathered and he flew down to the lower throne. The one where he could interact with them instead of looking over the entire kingdom. “Everyone who went to Earth step forward, now,” he said coldly in a tone that invited no argument. He noticed that a dozen of them stepped forward but he knew there were more than that and it wouldn’t be too difficult to find out who. “If I have to hunt you down later, I swear you /will/ regret it,” he hissed. That got the rest of them moving. 

Once he had all of the rulebreakers gathered, he called for Dromos and Squee to come to the front. “My lord,” they both intoned as the kneeled before him, hoping to gain some measure of forgiveness. 

Lucifer wasn’t in a forgiving mood though. These imbeciles had ruined his life. Taken everything that ever mattered to him. He reached down and grabbed each of them by their throat, lifting them high in the air and cutting off their breath. He glared hatefully at them before turning and flinging them at the wall on either side of the throne and the chains did their job and trapped them there. “You two will know nothing but pain for the rest of eternity. You will be made an example of until you are begging for death, but even that will be denied you.” He turned to look at the rest who had followed them. He wasn’t sure how many of them thought they were doing his will, or if they were an active part of the rebellion, but he didn’t care right now. “The rest of you…I will be merciful. You are banished to the wastelands for the rest of eternity, never to return.” He waved his hand and they disappeared, most of them with masks of horror on their faces. 

Even demons lived in terror of the wastelands. Lucifer doubted many of them would survive for long, but at least they would get the release of death, unlike the two leaders. “Let this be a lesson to anyone else who thinks to disobey,” he glared over the rest of them before calling two at random and giving them the chance to torture the betrayers and dismissed the rest of them. He would rotate them out daily so that everyone would get a turn. For the first time, he desired to join in, but the thought of what Chloe would think stopped him. He had never felt more alone in his life. Not only had he gotten a taste of real life before it was snatched away, but he didn’t even have his trusted Mazikeen by his side anymore. He had left her on Earth with instructions to watch over the detective and her offspring. 

After a few years, he’d grown bored with the torture of the two demons. Really he’d grown bored after a few days of their screaming and begging, but it took a few years before he simply couldn’t take it anymore and returned to the upper throne and just stayed there. He popped down to check on his captives every couple years. Just to make sure the demons were keeping up the torture and that they were appropriately broken, but otherwise, he kept to himself. He knew that the demons would have noticed his isolation. They would have noticed that he wasn’t having the mass orgies or even sleeping with any of them, but he didn’t care. It could be considered weakness or it could be considered coldness. He knew that with the example he had made, and was still making of the traitors, they wouldn’t dare to think it a weakness. 

It would be a few decades, by hell time, before something changed his routine. He was sitting there lost in his despair when he felt something tingle as it crossed the boundary into his realm. Human souls never did that, so he turned his attention to it in curiosity only to take off in desperate flight as he realized that it was a living human child. He knew that it would set off a feeding frenzy among the demons, and he had to stop it. He had no idea how a living child would have gotten here, but he couldn’t allow it to be destroyed. 

Lucifer flew as fast as he could towards where he could sense it, and heard the screams long before he got there. He burst into his demonic form and called for the pile of demons to stop and they all froze. “Let me through,” he ordered, his demonic voice echoing through the area and the demons immediately made a path, happy to allow their king to have his turn with the thing. 

When Lucifer made it through, he couldn’t help the gasp that escaped, not only at the state of the child, but her identity. Everything else flew from his mind as he knelt next to her and reached out a hand to her. “Urchin…how did you get here?...Why?” he asked softly as he took in all of her injuries, not noticing the murmurs starting from the demons or the two demons that had been slashed to death laying beside her. 

“Lucifer!” she exclaimed with a smile through her pain as he picked her up into his red and burned arms. “I knew you would save me,” she said so matter-of-factly that it threatened to break his heart into pieces as she turned her face into his demonic chest and passed out with a smile on her face. He was struck dumb at the fact that she didn’t shy away from his current form in the slightest, and hadn’t even completely processed that yet when his danger sense went off and he lashed out with a wing, knocking one of the demons far away as their blade went clattering to the stone ground. 

That drew his attention back to the crowd. “You are…helping it?” One of them asked disgustedly. 

“You /are/ weak,” another said as though confirming a suspicion. 

Before Lucifer could even respond, he was fighting off the entire crowd, but with the child trapped in his arms, there wasn’t much fighting he could do, so he just flew away. He reappeared in his bedroom and threw out his powers to seal the doors. It wouldn’t hold for more than a few hours, but that should be all he needed urgently. He placed the child on the bed and looked to her injuries, realizing that he wouldn’t be able to leave with her anytime soon. Injuries received in hell could not heal in other planes. Only celestials were immune to that fact, which meant that he would have to either keep her here until she healed, or take her back to be crippled, disfigured, and in pain for the rest of her life. That was no contest. As much as he hated the idea of being on the run in hell, caring for an injured child, there was no other choice. At least not one that he could ever live with. 

He set to doing what he could for her injuries now. He grabbed for some of his clothes from the closet and started tearing them into strips to bandage the wounds that were bleeding, but first he took one of his silk shirts and began to clean off the blood and ash so that he could see what he was doing. He broke off pieces of the furniture to make splints and set her broken bones, using more strips of his shirts to tie them in place. Once he had done everything he could for her he began to pace, trying to figure out his next move. He was sure that most, if not all, of the demons would be hunting him by now. He had just proven himself to be a weak ruler and they were out for blood. It was possible that there were some whose loyalty to him was stronger, like Mazikeen, but he didn’t know who and it wasn’t safe to even try to find out. Not while he had the urchin with him, completely dependent on him for survival. Lucifer could feel the demons beating down at his wards, and knew it wouldn’t be long before they got through and went back over to get the child just as she opened her eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

*When Lucifer returned to Hell*

Chloe wasn’t sure how long she stood on Lucifer’s balcony before she managed to collect herself enough to go home. She didn’t know what she was going to tell Trixie, but she knew she couldn’t do it alone. She knew that Maze was with Trixie so she called Linda on her way home and asked if she and Amenadiel could meet her there. She felt horrible about it. They had just gotten their son back from demons. They should be able to rest, but she was falling apart. She needed them. It didn’t help her guilt when they immediately agreed. 

By the time she got home, everyone was already there, Charlie sleeping in Linda’s arms, and Chloe was met by her far too observant daughter who hugged her tightly and asked what was wrong. A few more tears leaked out, but she managed to stop the floodgates as she asked Trixie to sit down with her. Once they were seated on the couch, Maze next to them and Linda and Amenadiel on the loveseat, she took a few deep shaky breaths. “Lu-Lucifer is gone,” she managed to get out. 

“Where did he go? When will he be back?” Trixie asked worriedly, not wanting to believe what her gut was telling her. 

“He…he had to go…back…um…back home,” she tried to figure out how to word it so that everyone else would know what she meant but Trixie wouldn’t pick up on it. 

“He went back to Hell?” Trixie asked wide-eyed. 

“What?” Chloe asked in shock, snapping her head down to look at her daughter. “How did you know…”

“He told me,” Trixie said with a roll of her eyes. He’d told them all. “Lucifer doesn’t lie.” 

Chloe choked back a sob. All that time she had been denying the truth, and her daughter had always seen it clear as day. “Yes…well…he had to go back. Probably forever.”

“But why?” Trixie asked, tears welling up in her eyes. 

Maze was the only who answered the question. “Because the demons weren’t listening to him anymore. They came up here to Earth and kidnapped Charlie and were killing people so he had to go back and get them to behave.” 

“But can’t he come back once he yells at them?” she asked hopefully.

“Without a king on the throne of Hell, the demons are uncontrolled. It was a miracle that it took as long as it did for them to rebel,” Amenadiel told her sadly. 

“Then can’t someone else do it?” Trixie asked petulantly. 

“Only an angel can rule hell,” Amenadiel told her. 

“Then make another one do it,” she said as though that solved the entire problem. 

“Unfortunately, the only one who can make them do anything is our father, and he’s not around anymore and isn’t likely to intervene on Lucifer’s behalf. All I could do is ask, and no one would agree. I have tried many times since Lucifer abandoned Hell to live here,” Amenadiel explained. 

That was the last straw for Trixie. “It’s not fair!” she yelled and ran to her room crying. That was the last straw for Chloe too, who broke down in her own tears, and Linda moved over to pull her into a hug, handing the baby to his father, knowing that Maze wouldn’t really be comfortable with the comforting act. 

Once Chloe’s sobs had abided, though the tears were still flowing slowly, Amenadiel turned to Maze. “I am surprised that he didn’t take you with him.”

“I tried to get him to, but he gave me a job here. I’m supposed to look after Chloe and Trixie and keep them safe,” Maze told them. When she noticed the angel bristling, she added, “He knows that you could too, but he said your priority is Linda and Charlie. He wanted someone whose focus wouldn’t have to be split.”

Chloe was struck anew with just how much Lucifer loved her. He went back to literal Hell to protect them all and he went more alone than ever just so that she and Trixie could have a little more protection. “Wh-what else did he say? When did he talk to you about it?” she asked, desperate for more news.

“Just that he wanted me to run Lux since I know what to do, you get the penthouse, and we all have access to his accounts and properties,” Maze said with a shrug. “He came by right after we got Charlie back.”

Chloe nodded and wrapped her arms around her stomach as though she could hold herself together that way. He had made all those arrangements, for her to be safe, to have his home, his money, his whole life, and he had done it before he knew that she loved him as much as he obviously loved her. She hadn’t thought her heart could break any more than it already was. 

There wasn’t much else to say over the course of the evening and Linda and Amenadiel left a few hours later. Chloe got up and went into Trixie’s room to talk to her, but found that she had cried herself to sleep, so Chloe climbed into the bed next to her and pulled her close, allowing sleep to claim her as well. 

After that, the days seemed to pass ever so slowly. Chloe had ended up punching Dan when he went off about Lucifer being unreliable and it wasn’t surprising that he ran off and was probably living it up somewhere with booze, drugs, and orgies. She couldn’t even bring herself to apologize for it, nor could she explain because Dan would never understand. Even if she told him, she had no proof and he would just think her crazy. It was forgotten soon enough though and Dan never made another crack about Lucifer again. 

Chloe never moved into the penthouse, but she did spend some time there, more and more as time went on, just so that she could feel close to him. Sometimes she brought Trixie, but most of the time she was by herself. Sometimes she even slept in his bed while Trixie was with Dan, pulling his pillows to her face and drinking in his scent. When the scent faded after a few weeks, she took to spraying some of his cologne on them. 

Chloe managed to keep herself together, but went through life in a fog. She did everything that she had always done, took care of Trixie, though she was a bit more clingy with her daughter, these days, or maybe Trixie was more clingy with her, but either way, they needed each other. She knew that her daughter missed Lucifer almost as much as she did. 

It was a year and a half since Lucifer had left when Trixie had enough. She waited until she knew she would be alone for a while and knelt beside her bed and prayed. “God, please. Let Lucifer come home. We love him and we miss him and we need him. He doesn’t deserve to be in Hell and he shouldn’t have to be. You have other angels. Make them do it. Just let Lucifer come home to us. Please.” Suddenly a man appeared in Trixie’s room and she jumped and let out a little squeak. “W-who are you?” she asked fearfully, already reaching for one of the blades that Maze had given her secretly, undecided on whether she should scream or not yet. 

The man tilted his head and looked curiously at her. “You were just praying to me, child. You truly love Lucifer?” 

Trixie dropped the blade and ran to who she now knew was God and kicked him in the shins. “Yes, I love him. He’s funny and nice, and always takes care of me and my mom and you’re so mean to him.” 

The creator didn’t flinch at her kick, but raised an eyebrow at both her behavior and words. “Do you trust him?”

“Always. Lucifer never lies.”

“Would you go to hell to get him? Even though it’s dangerous?” God wanted to see just how much this child cared for his wayward son. 

“Of course I would. Lucifer would always protect me,” Trixie said, crossing her arms and glaring at him for ever doubting Lucifer. 

“If I send you there for him, only he could bring you back,” God warned her. Perhaps he had been wrong about Lucifer if he could earn the love and loyalty of an innocent child. 

“I don’t care. I want to go,” Trixie said and God nodded. “Let me just grab some things,” she said as she snatched her backpack off the wall, put in a couple changes of clothes and the hell blades that Maze had given her. “Okay, I’m ready.” No sooner than the words were out of her mouth, she suddenly found herself somewhere else. 

When the demons started closing in on her, she was more scared than she ever felt, but she tried to hide it as she demanded to see Lucifer, but they jumped on her anyway. She did the best she could with her blades, but she wasn’t very good yet and it was more luck and the fact that they were so bunched up that let her kill two of them before she was overwhelmed. “Lucifer is going to be mad if you hurt me,” she said, trying to stand her ground, but it didn’t do any good. 

The only thing she knew after that was pain and then the demons moved away and she opened her eyes to see someone standing over her. He didn’t look like the Lucifer she knew, but he did look like some drawings of Lucifer from way back. More than anything, she recognized the look in his eyes, despite the fact that they were red instead of brown and she smiled. “Lucifer. I knew you would save me,” she said as she finally felt safe enough to let herself pass out.


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning, Chloe tried to force calm when she found Trixie’s bed empty. She yelled for Maze who came running, blades in hand, the second she screamed. “Do you know where Trixie is?” she asked, hoping against hope that maybe Trixie just had a nightmare and wandered in to sleep with Maze. It wasn’t exactly common but it had happened before. The look on the demon’s face told her that it wasn’t the case this time. 

“She’s not here,” Maze said, sniffing the air. “I’ll go look for her.”

“Check Lux first,” Chloe told her, knowing that was somewhere that she would be likely to go if she was hurting. Maze nodded and left and Chloe grabbed her phone and called Dan. Even if they found Trixie at Lux, he deserved to know, and if not, she needed to start turning over every stone immediately. “Dan, is Trixie with you?” 

“What? No. What do you…” she could hear the panic creeping into his voice. 

“Maze is checking Lux. I’ll start calling her friends and the school and…” she trailed off as the checklist continued in her mind. 

“I’m almost to the station now. I’ll put in a report and then come straight there,” he said worriedly. 

“Okay. Just hurry,” Chloe said, starting to lose her battle with stoicism. Once she hung up, she immediately called Linda. They hadn’t heard from her, but promised to be there soon. She had already called all of Trixie’s friends by the time that Linda and Amenadiel arrived. Apparently they had decided that flying was faster and Amenadiel was carrying Linda in a bridal position and Linda was carrying the baby. As soon as they landed, Linda handed the baby to the angel and pulled Chloe into a hug which was the last straw for Chloe’s emotions. 

She had just barely pulled herself together when her phone rang. It was Maze telling her that Trixie wasn’t at Lux and that she was going to keep looking. Dan pulled in as she hung up and rushed over to her. “Any news?” She shook her head, noticing the other cop cars following behind him and Ella getting out of Dan’s car with her kit. 

After giving the cops all the information she had, and what she had done since she found her missing, something else dawned on her, and she pulled Linda and Amenadiel into Trixie’s room, too upset to notice Ella in there dusting for prints, and too worried to care that Dan had followed her too. She had no intention of continuing to pretend when her daughter’s life was on the line. She turned to Amenadiel. “Do you think it was demons?” 

Dan looked at her in shock and hadn’t found words yet before Amenadiel answered. “No. Lucifer sent them all back to Hell after they took Charlie and none of them could have possibly left since he took the throne back without him noticing and stopping them. Plus Maze would have smelled if any other demons have been here, nor do I sense anything demonic.”

Dan finally managed to find words. “Are you people crazy? My daughter is missing and you people are worrying about Lucifer’s delusions?!” he snapped. 

Chloe turned and snapped back, “They aren’t delusions!” Dan looked at her like he wasn’t sure whether to have her committed or hit her, but then Chloe looked at Amenadiel. “I know you don’t like doing this, but we really need him in the know right now…”

Amenadiel nodded and waved a hand to close the door. The last thing any of them needed was the regular cops outside to see what was going on. Once the door was closed, Ella stepped out from behind the closet door to ask what was going on just as Amenadiel’s wings filled the room. “No way!” Ella exclaimed, drawing all attention to her as Dan just gaped. Amenadiel winced and put his wings away. 

“So Lucifer really is Lucifer? Like the actual honest to god devil?!” Ella said in awe.

“You let the actual devil around our daughter!?” Dan yelled. 

“He’s not what you think,” Chloe snapped at him. 

“Obviously. He was an angel first and anyone who knows him knows that he’s a good guy,” Ella jumped in before Dan could put his foot in his mouth any further. 

“He’s never lied to anyone, Dan. It’s not his fault that you didn’t believe him,” Chloe added. 

“But…he…I…How long have you known? Does Trixie know?” Dan asked, trying to figure out how this new aspect played into things. 

“I’ve known since Pierce, who actually was Cain from the bible. Lucifer had to use his powers to kill him and had to use his wings to shield me from the bullets. Trixie’s known all along apparently. She believed him from the start,” Chloe told him. When he opened his mouth to say something else, Chloe held up a hand to stop him and turned to Amenadiel as another horrible thought hit her. “Would you…I mean…Could you check…you know…see if she…” she couldn’t get out the words, but her gaze to the ceiling was enough to clue him in. 

“I don’t think she’s dead, but I will check to ease your mind,” he said, unfurling his wings again and flying out the window. 

Ella jumped back into the conversation. “As much as I want more information about all this, it can wait until we find Trixie. I’m not finding any prints that don’t belong to us, Lucifer, or Maze. Is there anything missing?” she asked Chloe. 

“Are we sure that Lucifer didn’t…” Dan cut off at the look from Chloe. 

“He would never hurt her. If he did take her it was to protect her from something, and he would have let someone know,” Chloe snapped as she looked around the room. “Her backpack is missing. Did you mess up the dresser while you were looking for things?” she asked Ella who shook her head. “Okay then probably some clothes too.” 

Amenadiel came back at that point with a pained look on his face. “No…” Chloe gasped at seeing the look. 

“No, no. It’s not what you think. She’s not there,” Amenadiel rushed to assure her. “Wherever she is, she’s still alive.”

Chloe collapsed onto the bed in relief. “Then what…” Linda asked. 

“My father has returned. And he gave me an ultimatum. I can either remain here with my family or return to the Silver City. I can’t go back and forth anymore.” 

“So you won’t be able to check again? Or you won’t be able to come back and tell us what you find?” Chloe asked worriedly. Part of her knew that she was being insensitive, worrying about how this affected her, but at the moment she didn’t care. 

“I have been given a week to make a decision, but once it is made I won’t be able to go back so I’m not deciding anything until Trixie is home,” he said giving Linda a look that said everything he couldn’t say out loud. His decision was made to stay with her and Charlie, but if he said it out loud then he wouldn’t be able to check heaven again, and she nodded. 

“A-Amenadiel,” Chloe croaked, losing her battle to not fall apart. “Could you…go tell Lucifer that I…I need him. Maybe…he can get away…at least for a little while.”

Amenadiel winced again. He’d managed to avoid telling anyone this until now. “I’m sorry, Chloe. I can’t. He warded Hell against celestials. He said it was too hard to get news of you when he couldn’t come back.”

“He…he didn’t want to know how I was?” she asked heartbrokenly. 

“Not because he didn’t care, Chloe,” he sat next to her and took her hand. “Just the opposite. For the king of Hell to show any weakness is to invite rebellion and…”

“And I make him vulnerable,” she finished softly. 

“In more ways than one,” Amenadiel told her. 

“So he’s completely cut off from everyone and everything he ever cared about?” she said sadly. 

“Mostly, yes. You could pray to him. I don’t know that he’d be able to get away, but you know that if it’s at all possible he will,” Amenadiel told her. He hadn’t mentioned praying before for all the reasons he just said. 

Chloe nodded and closed her eyes. “Lucifer, I know you’re probably busy, but Trixie is missing and I…I need you. Please. Just for a while.” 

“You love him,” Dan half-asked incredulously and Chloe nodded. “How? He’s the devil.”

“And he’s also an angel. He’s a good man in any sense of the word. Maybe he wasn’t always. I don’t know much about everything that happened so long ago. I never asked because it never mattered. Whatever he was or wasn’t then, he is a good man now.”

“He has earned his redemption. More than earned it,” Amenadiel jumped in. “Especially since he sacrificed everything to save the world from the demon’s invading, but even long before that.”

Dan sighed heavily and decided to drop it and bring the conversation back around to where it needs to be. “So are there any other ideas about Trixie?” 

“Well I think if her backpack and clothes are missing, it’s likely that she left willingly,” Ella suggested. She had just been taking everything in and thinking, both about the revelations and the situation. 

“Why? Why would she do this to us?” Chloe asked before gasping and jumping up, motioning for Amenadiel to get up too. She lifted the mattress and looked underneath before dropping it. “I think you’re right. She took the hell-forged blades that Maze gave her that I wasn’t supposed to know about. If anyone took her, they wouldn’t think to do that.”

“Hell-forged? What the hell is Maze?” Dan asked. 

“A demon,” Chloe said shortly before they were interrupted by a knock on the door as one of the cops came in. They had apparently come to the same conclusion about her leaving voluntarily after finding no sign of forced entry or struggle in the surrounding area. They apologized and promised to keep looking and keep the BOLO out, but they left. 

Once they were gone, the group moved back to the living room and Ella hugged Chloe tightly. “She’ll be okay. I’m sure of it.”

“Thanks Ella,” Chloe told her, sinking gratefully into the hug. “I just can’t think where she would have gone or why…” she turned to Amenadiel again. “You don’t think she could have gone to see Lucifer do you?”

Amenadiel quickly shook his head. “No living human could get into hell and as a child, her soul would never go there if she died. The only way she could have gotten there is if she was taken there, but celestials can’t get there anymore and the only demon that has been here is Maze and she would never. Even if she did, she would have stayed by Trixie’s side every moment, so I can say with relative certainty that she’s not in Hell.”

“Maybe she found another demon on Earth and went to meet them to take her there?” Chloe asked, not sure if she wanted it to be true or not. On one hand, at least she would know where her daughter was, but on the other hand it would be a place that she would never want her to be. 

He shook his head again. “No. The only way demons can leave is by possession or being taken across the gates by Lucifer himself. Lucifer banned possession long ago and made sure there were none left here before he went back and the only demon he has ever taken from hell himself is Mazikeen.”

Chloe ran a hand through her hair as she paced, but was stopped by Dan’s hands on her arm. “Okay, so I’m still getting used to the whole angels and demons and devil stuff, and I can understand why you’re so caught up in that explanation, but we need to start to consider the normal mundane thing. She snuck out and ran off somewhere and she’ll be home soon perfectly fine so we can ground her for the rest of her life.”

“Dan’s right,” Ella jumped in. “She’s not in heaven or hell. There’s no demons here…other than Maze apparently, which means it’s just good old fashioned child rebellion.”

“Yeah. Okay. You’re right. I just need to breathe. She’ll be home soon.” Chloe said, plopping down on the couch, but unable to shake the horrible feeling that something was really wrong. That feeling just grew over the next few days, and everyone did their best to keep her steady even as they started to lose hope too. Maze hadn’t been home yet, and probably hadn’t slept. She checked in every so often with where she was checking, who she had tortured for information etc, but she said she wasn’t going to rest until she found Trixie. Dan had been sleeping on the couch while Ella took Maze’s room. Chloe slept in Trixie’s bed and insisted that Linda and Amenadiel take hers when they insisted on staying. 

It was five days since Trixie was missing and Amenadiel had been checking heaven every day. Around lunchtime, while everyone was just picking at their food, There was a sudden crash and everyone spun around to see a long lean body and a mass of bleeding white wings wrapped protectively around his front. “Lucifer!” Chloe screamed running over just as the wings fell open limply and she saw Trixie there, clinging to him and sobbing. “Trix!”


	4. Chapter 4

Trixie just ignored her mother and was frantically shaking Lucifer. “Lucifer. Wake up. Please,” she sobbed. Chloe was in such a frantic rush to get to her daughter, and also make room so that someone could take care of Lucifer, she just grabbed Trixie and pulled her away, wrapping her arms around her daughter in relief, but not at all expecting the response she got. Trixie went into a flurry of activity, hitting and kicking her and anyone else that tried to get close until she broke out of Chloe’s grip and ran. 

Chloe and Dan ran after her, but stopped short when she ended up in the closet, curled into a little ball with her arms over her head, rocking back and forth silently. Chloe started to go to get her again, but was stopped by Linda’s hand on her shoulder. “Wait, Chloe. She’s obviously terrified and traumatized. Forcing her out would do more harm than good.”

“Then what do we do?” she asked brokenly, seeing the tears streaming down Dan’s face as his expression asked the same question. 

“The first thing I think we need to do is talk to Lucifer and find out what happened. The more we know about why the easier it will be to reach her,” she said. 

“We…we can’t just…leave her like this,” Dan croaked out. 

“I don’t think she’s going anywhere. Maybe we can put on some soft soothing music for her until we get back. Give her a little space and see if she calms down,” Linda suggested. 

Chloe nodded. She hated it, but truthfully, she needed to be sure that Lucifer was okay, just as much as she needed to be sure that Trixie was okay. At least Trixie seemed to be alright physically. She went over to the stereo and pulled out one of the classical CDs that Trixie had borrowed from the penthouse and put it on softly as she followed Linda and Dan back to the living room. 

Dan stopped in shock as Amenadiel was standing over Lucifer with his wings fully out, plucking feathers from his wings and laying them over Lucifer’s wounds as they healed. Ella came back in putting her phone away and watched the same scene in awe for a moment until she snapped out of it and said, “Maze is on her way back.” Linda had asked her to call Maze and let her know that Trixie was home. 

Chloe noticed that Amenadiel wasn’t healing his wings and asked him about it. “I cannot heal his wings. They will have to heal on their own.” 

“What…what could have happened?” she asked. 

No one got to answer because just as the last feather sunk into the last gash on Lucifer’s back he snapped awake and jumped to his feet looking around wildly as he whispered frantically, “Beatrice!”

Chloe stepped forward and put a hand on his arm, speaking at the same time and trying to avoid startling him. “It’s okay. She’s safe. She’s in her room.” 

Everyone could literally see the tension falling from Lucifer’s body as his wings folded back inside and he looked at Chloe like he was drowning. “Ch-Chloe,” he gasped, reaching out to her and she stepped forward, hugging him like she was afraid he might disappear. 

Lucifer choked a sob and Chloe could feel the tears falling in her hair as Lucifer clung to her just as tightly. “I missed you…so much…I can’t…” he choked again and just gave up on words as he clung to her. 

“As touching as all this is,” Dan sneered. “What the hell happened to my daughter?” 

Lucifer tensed up again and dragged himself away from Chloe, visibly struggling with putting himself together and refusing to show his embarrassment over falling apart like that. “Well if it isn’t detective douche.”

Dan’s arm was caught by Amenadiel before he could close the distance to punch Lucifer. “Enough,” he said harshly to Dan, before turning to Lucifer with a softer look. “Lucifer, I can’t begin to understand what you’ve been through but this is not the time for levity.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry,” he sighed, plopping back on the couch. “Is she okay?” 

“She’s backed into the corner of her closet, curled in a ball and won’t come out or speak,” Chloe told him, seeing the worry creep back into his eyes with every word. “What happened?” 

“You really don’t want to know,” he told her, begging her with his tone and his eyes not to ask. 

“You’re probably right. But we /need/ to know. If we want to have any chance of helping her through this, it’s important that we know what happened,” she said gently as everyone else, even Dan grudgingly, took a step back to let her deal with the tetchy devil. 

Lucifer ran a hand through his hair as he looked around the room. “I assume, given the spectacle we must have made, that everyone here is in the know now?” When she nodded, Lucifer took a deep breath before starting the story. 

Before he could speak though, Maze came barreling through the door. “Where is she?” 

“She’s safe. She’s traumatized, but safe. Lucifer was just about to tell us what happened,” Dan said looking at Lucifer with a look that ordered him to talk. Linda shook her head when Maze tried to go into Trixie’s room so she just huffed and plopped down in the chair. 

“I was just sitting on my throne keeping an eye on things in Hell when I sensed something different come through the barrier. It only took me a second to realize that it was a living human child and obviously I immediately started flying to her, not that I knew it was her at that point, but a living child in hell would be like a buffet to the demons and I couldn’t let any child go through that. She came through at the furthest point from me though and it took me about ten minutes to get to her. I had to take on my hell form in order to have enough force behind my orders to stop and leave her alone, but she was already so…” he choked up before he cleared his throat and tried again. “She was badly hurt.”

“How did she even get there brother?” Amenadiel asked confused. 

Lucifer sneered as his eyes flashed red and he let out a low growl, causing those that hadn’t seen it before to gasp and step back. “/Father/” he spat the name, “apparently sent her to come get me. Probably some kind of test or something. As if I didn’t have enough reasons to hate him already.”

Ella gasped and tears welled up in her eyes at the thought that God could do something like that. She grabbed the cross on her necklace and ripped it off her neck, breaking the clasp and threw it across the room in a fit of anger. “Why? Why would he do that?” she choked. 

“I don’t know, and I don’t care. I will find a way to kill him for it if I ever see him again,” Lucifer said, eyes still flashing red. “He apparently didn’t tell her much before he just tossed her into Hell.”

Chloe rubbed a hand on his back trying to calm him down. She was pissed too, but now wasn’t the time. “Okay, so you found her and she was hurt. Hurt how?”

“It was bad. Let’s just leave it at that,” Lucifer tried to fob her off, but she wasn’t having it and continued looking at him with a plea for the information. Lucifer sighed. “About half of the meat on her left leg was eaten, her right leg was broken, her left hand was shattered, a good chunk had been taken out of her shoulder and she had a couple dozen cuts and bruises.” 

There wasn’t a dry eye in the room at that, not even Lucifer’s. “And you had to take your other form to get them to back off? Did she see it?” Chloe asked worriedly, unsure how her daughter was going to take it. 

“She did, but the strange little urchin didn’t even care. She just…smiled at me and said that she knew I would come save her,” he said as much confused as anything else.

Chloe couldn’t help the wry chuckle that fell from her lips. Leave it to Trixie to not even blink at the devil. “Wait, what other form? What did she see?” Dan asked. 

“I have another form that is designed to put fear into demons and allow me to control them,” Lucifer said dismissively.

“Let me see it,” Dan asked, wanting to get a taste of everything that his daughter had been through and if it was designed to scare demons, there was no telling what it would do to a little girl.

“No,” Lucifer said coldly. “I only take that form when I have no other choice. The detective has seen it and if knowing is somehow important to your spawn’s recovery, she can be the one to help her through.”

“I think I have a right…”

“Dan, stop,” Chloe cut him off. “He’s right. You don’t need to see it.” She turned back to Lucifer. “So you found her and she was hurt…then what? How did you get hurt?”


	5. Chapter 5

“I need you to know that I would have brought her back right away if I could have. I swear I would’ve,” Lucifer told her, begging her with his eyes to understand. 

“I know, Lucifer,” she said softly. “Why couldn’t you?”

Maze was the one who answered that question. “Any injuries caused in Hell can’t heal on any other plane. Well, unless you’re an angel, and even then it’s not easy.”

Lucifer nodded in confirmation of that answer. “Mazikeen is correct. If I had brought her back then, she would have been crippled, deformed, and in pain for the rest of her life.”

“I understand, Lucifer, and thank you,” she said sincerely. “I know time works differently down there. How long did it take her to heal?” 

“Five months,” he said with a wince and Chloe gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. Her baby was trapped in hell for five months. 

“But you took care of her,” Chloe said, as much to reassure herself as anything else. 

“The best I could. When I took their ‘new toy’ away, the demons saw the care I took with her and saw it as a weakness. They rebelled and attacked. I barely got us away, but I managed to shield her from any more damage long enough to fly us to my rooms. I was able to reinforce the doors to hold for a few hours which was long enough to tend to her wounds. Once she regained consciousness, I asked her how she got there and she told me that she prayed to my father and begged him to let me come back and he sent her there to get me. Needless to say I was quite upset. More than a few demons got blown up as I got her out of there. We spent the next five months on the run, hiding in any corner we could find.”

“What happened while you were running?” Chloe asked, leaning her head on his shoulder, so he wouldn’t see her tears, though she knew he could feel them. 

“To start with I took her into the not so bad human hells. You know, the ones without any violence or death. The ones that wouldn’t traumatize her poor little mind. Whenever they found us, I’d fly us to a different one. There were a couple times we were caught in an ambush, but my wings were able to shield her while I fought. She would cling to my back so my hands were free and my wings could wrap around her. It took about two months before they managed to get wise to my methods and started keeping a watch on all of the ‘child-appropriate’ hells, so we were forced into the open. There were a lot more ambushes after that and we couldn’t manage to stop for more than a couple hours at a time to sleep, but luckily she was able to sleep as we were in the air and I spent a lot of time flying around where they couldn’t reach me so that she could rest and heal.”

“That must have been exceedingly painful with your wings as damaged as they were,” Amenadiel cut in. 

“It was necessary,” Lucifer brushed it off. 

Dan’s eyes widened as he finally started to see what everyone else had been talking about. He realized that so much of Lucifer’s attitude was a mask and he was really a better man than any of them. In that moment, everything that Lucifer had ever done was immediately forgiven by the brash detective. “Lucifer…Thank you,” Dan said sincerely. 

Lucifer just nodded and continued the story. “I brought her back sooner than I wanted to, but I was taking more and more damage and I knew that I wouldn’t be able to go on for much longer, so she still has a good amount of scarring on her leg and shoulder, but I couldn’t keep ahead of them anymore. I’m sorry,” he said sadly. 

Chloe finally looked up at him, tears still streaming down her face, and reached a hand to his cheek to lift his head to look at her. “You have nothing to be sorry about Lucifer. Nothing. You did more than anyone could ever have asked of you and you brought my baby home.”

Lucifer’s lips twitched in what was almost a smile. “I told you before, detective. I would do anything to protect that little urchin.” That was the last straw for Chloe and she leaned forward and kissed him. It was soft and sweet and the tears finally fell from Lucifer’s eyes as he pulled her close, reveling in everything he never thought he would have again. 

The kiss didn’t last long, but neither of them went far, leaning their foreheads together with their noses just barely brushing. This time Dan was actually sorry for breaking up the moment, but there really were more important things right now. “So do you have any idea why Trixie is curled up in a ball in her closet right now and any ideas on how to get her out?” 

Lucifer’s lips twitched again in an almost smile. “I’m afraid that would be my fault. I told her that if we ever got separated that she needed to find the smallest darkest hole she could and be completely silent until I came for her. She is likely afraid that this is another trick by the demons. I can get her out.”

Dan nodded and followed Lucifer and Chloe as they stepped into Trixie’s room, the rest of the group giving them their privacy in this one. Lucifer went over and crouched in front of the closet door. “It’s alright now, urchin. You can come out. You’re safe.”

It was like a switch flipped with Trixie as she shot up and barreled into Lucifer’s arms, only Chloe’s steadying hand on his back keeping him upright as he caught her. “Lucifer. I was so afraid. You fell and you wouldn’t wake up…and…and…” the tears fell even as her face was lit with a bright smile. Chloe’s hand went to her mouth to smother her gasp of happiness at the brightness and life that she could see in her daughter’s eyes and she looked to Dan to see that he was in much the same position. 

“It’s alright now, little urchin. We’re home. Everything will be okay now,” Lucifer told her patting her back awkwardly, still rather uncomfortable with her affection, but much more used to it now after their ordeal.

“We-we’re really home,” she asked through her sniffles.

“Yes, child. And look. Over there. Your mom. Go hug her,” he said as if giving orders to a puppy and Chloe barked an almost hysterical laugh as Trixie barreled into her and hugged her. It was classic Lucifer and she had her baby back and everything was going to be okay. 

Dan wasted no time joining the hug and Trixie wrapped one arm around him too as she started babbling. “I’m sorry. I’m so so sorry. I know I shouldn’t have gone, but I just really wanted Lucifer to come home and God said I could go get him and I didn’t think it would…would…”

“Shh. It’s okay baby. We’re just glad you’re home safe,” Dan said running a hand through her hair. 

“Your dad’s right, Monkey. We still need to have a talk about you running off on some quest, god-given or not, without permission, but I think you’ve been punished more than enough,” Chloe told her, noticing Lucifer leave the room and giving him a grateful look. 

Lucifer stepped back into the living room only to be nearly bowled over again by a hug from Ella. “I’m so glad you’re back. I missed you. We all did.”

Lucifer squirmed a bit at the hug, but tentatively returned it. “Ms. Lopez…you did catch the part of the conversation where I’m the actual devil, did you not?” 

“Of course I did, dummy. I’m not an idiot, and that eye thing is totally creepy cool, but you’re still Lucifer,” she said. 

“I have always been Lucifer,” he pointed out as she finally let go. 

“I know, but I didn’t know you were THE Lucifer, but you’re still the same Lucifer I’ve always known even if I didn’t believe the whole thing…” Ella cut off, realizing that she wasn’t making a whole lot of sense, but hoping that she at least got her point across. She looked up at him to see him looking at her confused like she was a bug in a microscope and this time it was her turn to squirm uncomfortably. 

Linda couldn’t help but laugh at his reaction to her non-reaction. “I’m sure she really means it Lucifer, now you should sit down. You look exhausted.” She remembered the part of the story where he hadn’t had more than a couple hours of sleep at a stretch for months and he definitely looked it. 

“Yeah. I should probably go anyway. Now that the crisis is over, you guys need some family time and all,” Ella told them and gave Lucifer one more hug before leaving. 

Lucifer collapsed onto the couch just as he heard the baby start fussing, and Amenadiel got up to go get him. Linda looked at Maze and cut her eyes towards Lucifer and then looked upstairs. “Right. And I need to go get some sleep. I’ve been going non-stop for five days,” she said, not really lying. 

Lucifer nodded at her and that left Linda and Lucifer in the room alone. Linda knew that he really needed to talk about this, but more importantly he needed sleep, so she turned the television on, hoping that he would drop off, but knowing that leaving him alone was the worst thing for him at the moment.


	6. Chapter 6

Chloe and Dan just held Trixie for a long time, murmuring platitudes and just being grateful that they had her back in one piece. The realized that they still had a long way to go though when they finally let her go and she looked around and they saw the panic in her eyes. “Lucifer. Where’s Lucifer?” she cried running out of the room in tears.

The rushed after her just in time to see her jump in Lucifer’s lap and it seemed like the devil had just dozed off, but he snapped awake, wrapping his wings around her so fast that there may as well have not been any movement and he was immediately scanning the room for danger. Once he realized where they were and that there weren’t any dangers he visibly relaxed and drew his wings back, willing the adrenaline back down. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to wake you up,” Trixie murmured embarrassed and sad. 

“It’s no bother urchin,” Lucifer told her. 

“You left me,” she accused, eyes brimming with tears again. 

“I didn’t go far and you were safe with your parents,” he said confusedly. 

Linda resisted the urge to sigh. This was not going to go well. Especially when she saw the worried looks on Dan and Chloe’s faces. She knew that Lucifer was the main one that she needed to reach though. Everyone else would understand much easier than he would. “Lucifer, she’s just been through a terrible ordeal. Traumatic even. And during that time, the only thing she had to keep her safe was you. It’s going to take her time to get past that and realize that she can be safe without you there,” she explained gently. 

“So you’re saying that she needs to get in a dangerous situation for her parents to protect her? That seems a little extreme,” he said instinctively tightening his arms around her in protest of the idea. 

Dan opened his mouth to protest as well but was stopped short by Chloe’s snort of laughter. How could she think that was funny? That’s when he noticed Linda’s reaction too and he figured it must be a Lucifer thing. He still didn’t particularly like it though, but he hadn’t missed the protective way he reacted even as he said it, so he let it go. 

Linda gave a long-suffering sigh, well used to his ability to take everything she said and make it mean the exact opposite. “No, Lucifer. I’m saying that she is going to need you around for a while so that she can continue to feel safe.”

“But…I can’t stay…the demons still need a king…” He protested, trying his best to ignore the strangled sound that Chloe made at that statement, but unable to ignore her words. 

“And you really think that can be you? After they rebelled against you and chased you all over hell trying to kill you? How do you expect to do your job after that?” she snapped, more scared than angry, but definitely some of both. 

“It doesn’t matter. Someone has to. If I can’t control them then no one can. Now that I don’t have the urchin to protect it will be easier. Would you rather wait until they invade the Earth with an army? They know her now, and they know you. You really think they wouldn’t come after you?”

“So you’re going to get yourself killed?” she argued. 

Trixie just clung to Lucifer, knowing that he couldn’t go anywhere as long as she had ahold of him and if her mother lost the argument she would try, but for now, she was staying out of it. Linda and Dan also both had a wait and see attitude. Linda thought it would be good for Lucifer to have such an argument in a more controlled situation where she would be there to talk him through afterwards. She shook her head at Amenadiel as he came down the stairs, telling him not to intervene. 

“If that’s the way to keep you safe, then yes! Absolutely!” he snapped. 

Chloe gasped and took a step back, both at the words and the vociferousness with which they were voiced. “Wh-what do you mean?” 

“As long as I live, my father will not make one of his ‘good’ children take over the throne of Hell. But if he has no choice…”

“Absolutely not, Lucifer,” Amenadiel couldn’t keep quiet anymore and Lucifer turned to look at him in betrayal. 

“You don’t think their lives are worth mine, brother? You would ask me to watch them die, just so I can live?” 

Chloe rushed over and hugged him tightly from the side Trixie wasn’t leaning on. “Lucifer, your life…your life is worth /everything/.”

“Even hers?” Lucifer said skeptically glancing down at the child in his lap. 

“It will not come to that brother,” Amenadiel told him. “If necessary I will take the throne myself.”

“You can’t. You have a son to consider,” Lucifer scoffed. 

“And I have a brother to consider as well,” Amenadiel replied. “They will still respect me and I can bring them in line. It would not be the death sentence for me that it would be for you brother. But still, there may be another way.”

Lucifer rolled his eyes. “You know…after almost a decade of trying to force me to go back to hell for this very reason, you’re being very recalcitrant now that I’m finally planning to follow your orders,” he taunted. 

“You know very well why; and I haven’t tried to make you go back to hell since Mother left,” Amenadiel pointed out. “Just give me two days to find another way and if I can’t then you and I can argue over the throne.”

Lucifer narrowed his eyes before giving a curt nod. “But if things get out of hand before then, I will do what I have to do.”

“Agreed,” Amenadiel said simply because he knew that there was nothing else he could say. He had every intention of keeping an eye on things himself and jumping in before Lucifer had to if it became necessary though. 

“So, now that’s settled, Lucifer, you need to get some rest,” Linda told him. 

“I’m fine, doctor,” he replied automatically. 

Chloe reached up a hand to run through his hair and he looked at her. “No, you’re not. Please get some sleep. For me.”

Lucifer sighed heavily but nodded. “I suppose I should check on Lux anyway…”

“Lucifer…Stay. Please,” Chloe whispered putting as much meaning as she possibly could into the words and following it up with a soft quick kiss. “Don’t leave…” she knew she was echoing the words she said to him before he left for Hell, and was hoping that he wouldn’t be able to deny her again. 

Lucifer closed his eyes, leaning his forehead against hers, neither of them noticing the bright smile on Trixie’s face at the idea of them together…finally. “Okay. For now, at least,” he finally agreed. 

Linda smiled. “And now that the crisis is over Amenadiel and I should head home.” She reached out a put a hand on Chloe’s arm. “Call me if you need me.” She leaned down and whispered in her ear. “And unless you have any objections, Trixie is now my patient.” Chloe just looked gratefully up at her and nodded. 

“Do you guys need a ride? I didn’t see a car…” Dan asked, trailing off as Amenadiel handed Linda the baby and picked her up. 

Linda grinned. “It’s okay. We’re flying,” she said, nodding to the father of her son and he pulled out his wings and flew them home. 

“That’s just…wow…I can’t believe…” Dan said in awe, looking at the spot they left from. 

“It’s a lot,” Chloe chuckled at Dan’s response. 

“What are we going to tell people about what happened?” Dan asked worriedly, suddenly realizing that there were going to be a lot of questions about Trixie and Lucifer both being back. 

“The truth,” Lucifer said with a shrug, ignoring Dan’s incredulous look and just continued. “She snuck out to come see me and I brought her home.”

Dan snorted. “That’s…a very liberal…interpretation of events.”

“But is anything about it untrue?” Lucifer drawled.

Dan shook his head. “You are…something else man.” He looked at the three of them cuddled up on the couch together and suddenly felt like he was intruding. As much as he wanted nothing more than to stay by his daughter’s side forever, she needed sleep as much as Lucifer did. He was going to stay here for at least a few more days, but he could give them some privacy. Now that he knew it was a mask, he could tell that Lucifer was struggling to keep it up right now, and could only conclude that it was because of him and he really couldn’t blame the man…devil…honestly. “I should head into the station and get the BOLO taken down and take care of any paperwork and stuff about this whole thing.”

“Are you coming back later?” Chloe asked. 

“Yeah. If…if that’s okay,” he asked looking at Trixie where she was starting to nod off on Lucifer’s lap. 

Chloe nodded. “Yeah. That’s fine. Couch is still available.” 

Once Dan was gone, Chloe turned to Lucifer and Trixie. “Now I know two people who should get some rest. Come on Trix.” She knew that there was a good chance that Trixie wasn’t going to end up sleeping in her own bed tonight, but she knew that she needed to try at least. If she couldn’t do it, then okay, but they had to start somewhere.

Trixie looked up at Lucifer. “Can you sing me the song first? Please?” 

Lucifer sighed heavily. “Must I?” he drawled like it was an onerous task, but both of the girls in the room could see the truth in his eyes and Trixie nodded. Chloe watched on curiously, wondering what song and why, but that question could wait until tomorrow. 

Lucifer cleared his throat and began to sing, morphing the rock song into something more like a lullaby. “New blood joins this earth; And quickly he's subdued; Through constant pain disgrace; The young boy learns their rules; With time the child draws in; This whipping boy done wrong; Deprived of all his thoughts; The young man struggles on and on he's known; A vow unto his own; That never from this day; His will they'll take away…”


	7. Chapter 7

Trixie was asleep by the second verse but Lucifer didn’t stop singing until the end of the song, nor did Chloe try to stop him. She would never get tired of hearing him sing, and most importantly of the emotion that he poured into every word and she had to admit that the song fit him wonderfully in many ways. Or at least the way he saw himself, and only Lucifer would use Metallica as a lullaby. Once the final notes of the song faded away, she leaned down to kiss his shoulder and whispered. “Can you put her in her bed for me?” She knew that transferring Trixie into her arms and then the bed would probably wake her up, but one transfer didn’t usually. 

Lucifer nodded and walked into Trixie’s room. Chloe pulled the blankets down so Lucifer laid her gently onto the bed. Before Chloe could pull the blankets up though, Lucifer had them, and tucked them gently under Trixie’s chin, and ran a hand through her hair, before he started a bit and pulled away, walking out of the room. Chloe thought for a moment about telling him it was okay to care about her, but realized that drawing attention to the fact wouldn’t be helpful right now. Maybe not ever. It was enough that they all knew that he did care. He’d proven that time and again. He could take the opening up part of it at his own pace. 

Once they were back into the living room, Chloe grabbed Lucifer’s hand and said, “Now we can go to bed.”

Lucifer smirked. “Why detective, I thought you’d never ask.”

Chloe chuckled and shook her head. “To sleep, Lucifer. Sleep.” She considered for a moment before daring to let loose a joke. “After all, I would hate for you to end up falling asleep in the middle of our first time.”

Lucifer gasped in mock horror and grabbed his chest. “I would never!”

Chloe laughed aloud this time and laid down, pulling him into the bed. “Just hold me, Lucifer?” she asked softly. 

“Anytime you wish, my love,” he whispered, pulling her into his arms and falling asleep almost immediately. 

Chloe blinked back the tears at his words. She had always known that Lucifer had issues with feelings. The roundabout way that he’d told her that he loved her before he left had seemed like a miracle, but here it was again. She had been worried that after all this time that his feelings might have changed or died or something, but now she knew that was just her insecurity talking. He loved her, and she knew that she could never deserve it after everything that she’d done, but she would certainly try to from here on in. She turned her mind to wondering how long it had been for him in hell time. Trixie had been gone for five days and he’d said she was there for five months. It had been a little over a year and a half since she’d seen him and she did some math in her head and then screwed her eyes shut in an effort not to react in a way that would wake him as she realized that it had been almost fifty years for him. She got her mind and her heart under control after that realization and turned to kiss his chest softly and smiled as his arm twitched, tightening around her in response. 

She hadn’t quite managed to fall asleep yet when the door creaked open and she opened her eyes to see Trixie stumbling sleepily towards the bed climbing up and curling up to the other side of Lucifer. She barely managed to suppress her gasp when his wings suddenly flared to life and wrapped around them both before she grinned and closed her eyes again. It seemed Trixie wasn’t the only one who was attached. She had expected her to end up in here tonight, but she had wanted to see how bad it was. All three of them were too deeply asleep to notice Maze slip in about an hour later, blades in hand, and curl up on the floor at the foot of the bed near the door. 

Dan returned a few hours after he left and immediately looked in on Trixie, forcing himself to stay calm when he saw her bed mussed up but her not in it. Instead he headed for the stairs to check Chloe’s room before he panicked. He slid the door open quietly and had barely registered the mass of wings on the bed with three sets of feet sticking out before he was suddenly shoved out the door and against the wall with a curved blade at his throat. His eyes widened and he gulped as he raised his arms in surrender and he could see the recognition creep into her eyes and she nodded and let him go. 

He followed her back into the room, raising an eyebrow when she curled back up on the floor at the foot of the bed. Dan double checked to make sure that one of those sets of feet was Trixie before the adrenaline left him and he decided that if everyone else was in here, he might as well be too and he made his way for the armchair that was sitting on Trixie’s side of the bed and sat down, getting as comfortable as he could and closed his eyes. 

Chloe was the first person to wake up the next morning and found that Lucifer’s wings had slid down slightly as they slept so that their faces were uncovered. The next thing she noticed was Dan sleeping in the chair next to the bed and she rolled her eyes. “Dan,” she whispered loudly, trying to wake him up. She understood why he was here, but she wasn’t so sure Lucifer would. At the sound, there was suddenly a flurry of movement at the foot of the bed and she startled at the sight of Maze jumping to her feet, blades in hand and looking for a threat. She tried very hard to hold it in, but couldn’t help that gut-busting laugh that broke out of her. 

Lucifer woke up to the most wonderful sound in the world and creaked his eyes open at the same time that Dan started awake and Trixie groaned and mumbled. It took him barely a moment to take in the scene and guess what had happened and he laughed too. “My my. It seems we’ve had a surprise slumber party.” 

Chloe looked at him and the only sign of his discomfort was how quickly his wings disappeared. It seemed that was enough to wake Trixie completely with an irritated whine. “I was comfy and warm,” she complained petulantly, sleep still heavy in her voice. 

“Now, now, little urchin. One would think you didn’t want any breakfast,” Lucifer drawled, taking the opportunity to decrease his discomfort somewhat by getting her off of him. When he realized that the root of his discomfort was just how comfortable he found it, he just shoved that out of his mind to be considered later, or perhaps never. 

“Breakfast! Oh please. I’m soooo hungry,” Trixie pleaded, suddenly wide awake. 

“I would imagine so since it’s been five months since you’ve eaten,” Lucifer chuckled. When he saw the alarmed and even horrified looks on Chloe and Dan’s faces at that statement, he rushed to clarify. “Hell is a different plane of existence. Food isn’t necessary.”

“But I’m still really hungry,” Trixie complained. 

“Of course, urchin. Come. Let us see what your mother has available to cook,” He said sliding himself out of bed. When he noticed the suit hanging on the closet door, he looked at Maze with a grateful nod. While he wasn’t generally shy about nudity, spending the last day with an entire group of people while wearing nothing but a pair of pants that had more holes than material wasn’t exactly comfortable. Trixie immediately ran downstairs and when Dan noticed that Lucifer was stripping out of his pants to change right there, he went bright red and followed her quickly. Chloe laughed at the look on Dan’s face before turning to watch Lucifer. It was nothing she’d never seen before, but this time she knew that she loved him and that he loved her and that one day, hopefully soon, she would get to have it all. 

Lucifer turned to head downstairs, shirt still half unbuttoned and jacket set aside to put on later, and noticed her watching, so he winked and smirked at her before sauntering out. Maze rolled her eyes and followed him. Those two were hilarious. 

Chloe stretched leisurely before pulling herself out of bed as well and changed clothes, following her nose down the stairs to find Lucifer in the kitchen, whipping batter in a bowl before turning to flip an omelet. “No no child. Not /that/ much of the cheese,” Lucifer said scandalized, not fast enough to stop her from throwing a handful into another bowl that looked like the base for another omelet. 

“I /like/ cheese,” Trixie argued. 

“Fine then that one is yours, detestable little urchin,” he grumbled as he pulled the first omelet off and poured hers on, before flipping the bacon, and then grabbing the batter and pouring out pancakes onto the griddle.


	8. Chapter 8

Chloe noticed Dan watching them cook breakfast with a strange look on his face and she went over to sit next to him. “What’s up?” she asked. 

“Just trying to figure him out,” Dan replied. 

Chloe chuckled. “Get in line. And I’m pretty sure he’s at the front of it.”

Dan couldn’t help a snort of amusement at that either. “He’s the devil.” 

“But he’s not evil,” Chloe pointed out firmly.

“No. He’s not. But he’s supposed to be…It doesn’t make sense,” Dan said. 

Chloe smiled bitterly at the unintentional reminder of her greatest betrayal. “I find it helps if I remember the fact that history is written by the victors and if there’s one thing that I’m sure we can all agree on it’s that he wasn’t the victor there.” 

Dan considered that for a long moment before nodding slowly. “Yeah. That makes sense. But what is the real story?” he asked curiously. 

She shrugged. “Who knows. Does it matter?” 

“It’s probably just my curiosity talking, but yeah. Kinda,” Dan told her. 

“I don’t know much, but here’s what I do know. He led a rebellion in heaven. I don’t know what about or what happened during it, but I know that it wasn’t a violent one. No one died or anything, but then he was cast into hell to oversee the tortured souls and demons.”

“Oversee them?” Dan asked skeptically. 

“He said that he rarely joined in on the torture and on the rare times he did it was the worst of the worst and because he was bored. He was more of the ‘big picture guy’ as he called it.” 

“And you’re okay with that? Him torturing souls?” Dan asked, not sure if he would be. 

“Honestly? Yeah. They’re dead and in hell which means they deserve it and they would be tortured whether he joined in or not. Tell me you’ve never been tempted to torture any of the criminals we’ve ever gone after,” she said pointedly. 

Dan sighed as his final objection just went up in smoke. “Yeah. Okay. You’re right. It’s just…hard to suddenly think of the devil as a good guy who got a bum deal.”

Chloe laughed. “Tell me about it,” she said getting up and heading over as Lucifer finished putting the food on the table, followed by Dan. Maze was already sitting at the dining room table, not having moved more than a few feet away from Trixie since she woke up. 

Breakfast was filled with laughter and teasing and even Dan accepted Lucifer’s teasing and just gave as good as he got, surprising the devil who responded with a grin. Lucifer would never admit it, even to himself, but being here like this, surrounded by his new family, even Dan, laughing and having fun, was healing his soul in ways he never dreamed was possible after he ripped his heart out to do his duty. 

Once breakfast was over, both Lucifer and Trixie were nearly forcefully pushed towards the showers. Chloe understood that the most pressing needs were being taken care of in order. Calm, sleep, food, now showers. Both were still covered in dried blood, dirt, and ash. She had every intention of changing out the linens while they were in their respective showers, but was stopped by the doorbell. Before she could get to it, Maze was at the door, blades in hand and cracked it open to look out before relaxing and opening it all the way. Chloe just rolled her eyes. She figured it would be a few days before Maze stopped looking for danger at every second. It warmed her heart to know that her child meant so much to the demon though. 

She greeted Linda and Amenadiel as they came in carrying Charlie. “Hey, how are you?” Linda asked seriously. 

“One step at a time,” Chloe let out a tense chuckle. “Lucifer’s in the upstairs shower while Trixie has the downstairs one. I figured sleep and food were more important last night.”

Dan chuckled. “You might want to take a turn after them you know.” Chloe looked at him confused before walking over to the kitchen mirror and snorting a laugh. One side of her face and neck had smudges of what seemed to be ash on them. 

“Well, while they are otherwise occupied, I have some news,” Amenadiel told them. 

“What’s up?” Chloe asked worriedly. If it was something he didn’t want Lucifer or Trixie to hear, then it couldn’t be good. 

“Last night I returned to the Silver City for the last time to tell my father my decision and discuss recent events. I asked him what his justification was for putting Trixie in that situation and his answer was…not comforting.”

“What was it?” Dan asked dangerously. 

“Before I explain, I wish to express the fact that I am merely offering his explanations not expressing any agreement with them in any way,” he said almost nervously. 

“I get it, Amenadiel. We won’t shoot the messenger,” Chloe assured him. 

“He was surprised to get a prayer from Trixie about Lucifer and more surprised that she seemed to know him personally and still care for him so he came to talk to her. After she was adamant that she loved Lucifer and trusted him implicitly, Father was…confused. He began to think that he may have misjudged Lucifer after all if he could earn the love and trust of an innocent soul, but he couldn’t be sure. He decided that the best course of action was to test Lucifer, so he gave Trixie a choice. Claimed that her free will was the important thing, much as I disagree in this situation, but she chose to go and place her trust in Lucifer.”

“What was he being tested for?” Chloe almost spat. 

“To see if he would first save her, then protect her against impossible odds, and wait for her to heal so that she would have a better life back here or just throw her back regardless,” Amenadiel told them. “Since he passed the test with flying colors, unsurprisingly to those of us who know him, Father sealed hell. No one needs to rule anymore. Nothing can leave and nothing except for damned souls can go in.”

Chloe had noticed Lucifer coming down the stairs as Amenadiel began to describe the test, but knew that she couldn’t do anything about it. Shushing Amenadiel and hiding it from him would be the worst possible thing she could do, so she had no choice but to let him listen. Only the fact that she was watching for it allowed her to see the agony wash over his face for a moment before he wiped it blank and pushed past them towards the door. 

Chloe froze for a moment before rushing after him, but only got outside in time to hear the swoosh of wings and he was gone. She sighed sadly and went back inside. At the expectant looks she explained, “He’s gone.” 

“He went to Lux,” Maze said matter-of-factly.

“How do you know?” Dan asked. 

“He’s upset. When he’s upset, he plays. His pianos are at Lux,” she said as though it should be obvious. 

Chloe nodded. She knew that she didn’t know Lucifer quite as well as the demon did yet, but she would have guessed that too if given a few moments thought. One thing she did know better than the demon, though, was emotions, so she took a moment to think and try to figure out what Lucifer could have heard through what was said. When she got it, she couldn’t help the gasp that escaped her lips, even as Dan asked, “Why would he be that upset? I mean I’m not exactly happy about it. In fact I’m pretty pissed, but that seemed a bit extreme.”

“Did it Dan?” Chloe asked bitterly. “Consider it from his point of view. To his mind, his own father thought he was a monster and set out to use Trixie to prove it. To add insult to injury, there was no reason for him to have been banished to hell for all those years. It could have been sealed at any time. He was trapped there for millennia for no reason whatsoever.”

Even Dan paled at that realization, and Chloe grabbed her jacket and keys to go after him before she stopped. She knew that she would have to wait for Trixie. Her daughter would be likely to have a fit when she found out he was gone. She couldn’t not take her, whether Lucifer was up for her company or not. It was only another five minutes before Trixie came out of the bathroom, and immediately looked around for Lucifer, and Chloe rushed to do damage control. “He went to Lux. We’ll head there to see him as soon as you get your shoes on,” she promised. 

Trixie nodded and grabbed a random pair of shoes and followed her mother outside. Chloe noticed how twitchy and nervous she was, but so help her, she couldn’t exactly blame Lucifer for needing to get out. Or more like needing to get to his piano. She was sure that if she had a piano at home, he would have stayed.


	9. Chapter 9

No sooner than Chloe and Trixie left, Dan decided that he needed to be there too. Or nearby at least. He was trying to walk a fine line between needing his daughter near him and giving Chloe and Lucifer their space for their burgeoning relationship. He consoled himself with the fact that once Lucifer was more together, they would probably be trying to coax Trixie into talking about hell. That had been the plan anyway. He needed to be there for that talk, so maybe he could just wait downstairs at Lux and let Chloe know he was there so she could let him know to come up when that came up. Yeah. That would be acceptable. 

“Don’t think you’re going alone,” Maze told him before he even said anything. Dan just nodded. 

“We’ll go with you. If they are going to try and get Trixie to open up, I might be able to help,” Linda chimed in, easily guessing where they were going. “But we’ll hang out downstairs until then,” she added in a tone that brooked no argument and thankfully she got none. 

Once Chloe and Trixie were in the car headed for Lux, Chloe decided to try and start a conversation to get Trixie’s mind off of her jitters. She was practically shaking now. “Hey, Monkey, can you do something for me?” 

“What?” she asked worriedly. She was worried that her mom was going to ask for alone time with Lucifer and she knew that she should give it to them, but she didn’t know if she could. She loved them together and didn’t want to get in the way, but she was so scared. 

“Lucifer’s kinda going through a lot right now. He got some bad news this morning which is why he left. He needs us to help take care of him for a bit until he feels better. Can you help me with that?” 

Trixie nodded emphatically. “Of course I can. He took care of me, so I’ll take care of him. What do we need to do?” she asked. 

“Well he’s probably playing the piano. It helps him when he’s hurting, so just let him play and let him know we’re here for him. That’s all.”

“I can do that. What bad news did he get?” she asked. 

Chloe wasn’t about to tell her that. “It’s not really my place to say.” Chloe would try to get him to talk about it at some point when they were alone, but she didn’t know how to tell her daughter that God turned her into a pawn and didn’t really expect her to survive. 

Trixie pouted, but didn’t argue. She knew what it was like and wouldn’t want everyone going around telling her business either. It didn’t take them long to get to Lux and she barreled inside, beating her mother to the elevator and tapping her foot impatiently as she waited. She forced herself to calm down while it was going up though. She knew that if she was all hyper, he wouldn’t be able to play and if that was what he needed then she was going to make sure not to stop him. 

Once the elevator doors opened at the top, Trixie walked out at a normal pace and slid up on the bench next to him and leaned her head on his shoulder as Chloe walked up behind him. He stopped playing once he noticed their presence, but Chloe put both hands on his shoulders and leaned down to kiss his head. “It’s okay. Just play,” she said softly, and he hesitated a moment, but then started playing again as she ran a hand through his hair and Trixie just sat there sedately with her head on his shoulder, just being there for him. 

Lucifer could feel his chest tightening at the moment they were sharing. He had come here because he had never felt as hated and misunderstood, but now he was feeling the exact opposite. Chloe understood that playing helped him work things out and had apparently told her spawn and they were both just sitting here with him. He felt…loved…blessed…everything that he didn’t deserve. He abruptly stopped playing and got up, heading towards the balcony. 

Chloe sighed sadly. She had been able to feel the tension leaving him at their presence before it returned full force, and after that whole incident about him hating himself a couple years ago, she had a little insight into why. She leaned down and whispered to Trixie, “Will you be okay watching TV in here while I go talk to Lucifer?” 

Trixie looked at the couch and then to the balcony and realized that she would be able to see him from there so she nodded. That would be close enough. She could see how sad Lucifer was, and after everything he did for her, she knew that she would do anything he needed to help him feel better. “Thanks Monkey,” she said with a smile and kissed Trixie’s head, handing her the remote as she sat down on the couch. 

Chloe walked out to the balcony and put a hand on Lucifer’s back as she stepped up next to him, looking out over the city. “You have to know that I never would have doubted for a second that you would do everything in your power to protect Trix. Neither would Maze or Linda or even Amenadiel. Anyone who knows you would know that.”

“Then what does it say that he didn’t,” Lucifer said bitterly, taking a long drink of his glass of whiskey. 

“That he’s blind and selfish and judgemental and hasn’t bothered to take the time to get to know you,” she told him. She knew that knowing that one’s own parents were like that wasn’t exactly the best thing, but that wasn’t really his issue right now. She knew that he was doubting himself and his goodness and that’s what she needed to stop. 

“And you think you know me?” he scoffed. 

“Yes. I do. I may not know who you were a million years ago, or even ten years ago, but I know who you are now and that’s really all that matters,” she told him honestly. “We all grow and change and evolve in our lives. Even the devil. I’m hardly the same person now that I was ten years ago. And there are still people who judge me based on the brat I was as a child or the idiot I was as a teenager, and I can’t change that. If someone can’t judge you based on who you are now, then that’s their problem. And that’s their loss, because the person you are now is a wonderful man that I…that I love,” she stumbled over the words, not having said them since the day he left her, but she knew he needed to hear it. 

Lucifer slumped forward slightly, as though a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders and his cigarette fell from his fingers. He reached out an arm to put around her waist and leaned his head against hers. “You are…remarkable…Chloe Decker and I am…blessed…to know you,” he said softly. 

“Just as I’m blessed to know you, Lucifer,” she told him sincerely. 

He turned to look down at her and caught her eyes before he kissed her gently. He leaned his forehead against hers as he screwed up all his courage and whispered. “I…I love you, Chloe. With everything that I am.”

She smiled brightly and kissed him again before saying, “And everything you are is all I’ll ever need.”

His eyes glistened with unshed tears as he kissed her once more, this time deepening the kiss for the first time and she wrapped her arms around him and kissed him back greedily. They didn’t break apart until they needed air and she buried her face in his neck, just breathing him in and he did the same, never wanting to let go. “Stay here with me?” he asked hopefully, hating how nervous he sounded, even to him. 

She pulled back enough to look in his eyes to see if he was asking what she thought he was and if he even knew what he was asking. “You want me to move in with you?” She hoped that he knew that asking that meant Trixie living with him too. 

“Nothing would make me happier than to have you near me every possible moment,” he told her. “Your spawn too,” he added, knowing that they were a package deal and finally admitting, at least a little, that she meant something to him too. 

“Well…there would be a lot of logistics to work out, but in theory…yes. I would love to move in with you,” she told him happily. 

“What kind of logistics?” he asked confused. He’d never done this before. The only time he’d every had anyone move in with him had been Eve and she literally just fell out of the sky. 

“Well I have a lease with Maze and I don’t know if she could afford the place on her own and it wouldn’t really be fair for me to just leave her high and dry like that. Plus, there is only one bedroom here and we’d need a room for Trixie. I know you have a lot of valuable and breakable stuff here that she probably shouldn’t have access to. Plus, I’m not sure how secure I am with how open this place is and how anyone can walk in anytime they want. That’s really all I can think of off the top of my head.”

Lucifer thought back to the only other time that the child had been here and realized how ridiculous he’d been. He’d been completely caught off guard and handled it badly. Okay the gift from Napoleon was pretty much irreplaceable as were some of the books, but there was really nothing to worry about with the piano or her jumping on the couch. Those could be easily repaired or replaced. He assumed that the spawn had told her about that and part of her worry was coming from that. 

“Okay, none of that is any problem. I’ll buy the apartment for Maze, so she and you won’t have to worry about it. There’s a storeroom on the other side of the office area so I can have some contractors in here tomorrow to knock out that wall and we can make a bedroom for the urchin. I have other properties that I can move the irreplaceable items to and anything else I can always replace if need be, and I can just put a lock on the elevator. I’ve considered that a time or two anyway, so problems solved,” Lucifer told her.

Chloe just laughed happily. “Just like that huh?” she asked with a grin as she reached up to run a hand through his hair. 

“It’s more than worth it for you, my love,” he told her, leaning down for a short kiss. 

“How long do you think until it’s all ready?” she asked excitedly. 

“Well I can have the contractor out here tomorrow. An easy job like that shouldn’t take more than a couple days. Then another day for the wallpaper and decorators. The lock on the elevator will be a piece of cake and I can probably have that done by tonight, same with buying Maze’s apartment.” 

Chloe chuckled at his excitement that mirrored her own and decided to throw him a bone that she had wanted to anyway. “I’ll tell you what. If you can get the lock on the elevator by tonight, we’ll stay here then. It’ll probably be at least a few days, probably longer, before Trix will manage to sleep in her own bed anyway.” 

“That sounds like a marvelous idea,” he said swinging her around with another kiss.


	10. Chapter 10

“I’ll just go call the locksmith then, shall I?” Lucifer said with a smirk. Chloe nodded so he pulled out his phone and stepped back into the house and into his room, getting some space cleared out in the closet as he talked. By the time he finished his phone call, he’d come to the conclusion that he would have to talk to the contractors about adding a second closet in here as well. And a door. Because sooner or later he intended on doing things that would require a door as a barrier from the child. 

When he headed back into the living room he saw the detective texting on her phone and looked at her curiously. She walked over, leaving Trixie on the couch and spoke softly. “I was planning on trying to get Trixie to open up and talk about some of what she went through.”

“Whyever would you want to do that?” he asked incredulously. “There’s no need to dredge up all those painful memories.”

“Because it’s better to talk about it. Getting it out in the open helps it seem less scary.”

“It’s hell, detective. There is no ‘less scary’ about hell.”

Chloe resisted the urge to sigh. She knew where he was coming from, and more importantly, she knew that explaining therapy to the devil could be difficult, despite the fact that he had been /in/ therapy for years, but she had to try. “Because when you just bury everything in your mind, it can come back and haunt you like in nightmares or say…spontaneously taking on a more demonic form because you haven’t come to terms with things.” 

He narrowed his eyes playfully at her. “You think the child has a demonic form?” he teased. 

She chuckled, but got the conversation back on track. “I just mean that getting things out in the open and dealing with them is healthy and allows you to help move past them. Remember when you were having trouble and it wasn’t until you started talking to me about it that you were able to move past it?”

He grudgingly had to admit that she had a point. “Very well. You wish to make the urchin talk about hell. I still think it’s a bad idea, but I’ll go along, as long as I don’t have to participate too much.” 

“Actually, what I’d like you to do is play,” Chloe told him. 

“Pardon?” he asked confused. 

“The music will help relax her and make her feel safe. That way you’re far enough from the conversation that you don’t have to participate unless you want to, close enough for her to feel comforted, and doing something that will keep all of us, her especially, calm,” Chloe told him. She had every intention of getting him to talk about hell one of these days too, but that had been simmering long enough and would be hard enough to pull out that it could wait and maybe seeing Trixie doing well after talking would help her argument when it was his turn. 

“I suppose I could be bothered to do that. When are you wanting to have this conversation?” 

The elevator dinged and Lucifer jumped and immediately jumped through the room, placing himself between the elevator and Trixie, not relaxing until he saw Dan, Maze, Linda, and Amenadiel step out. Chloe was at once, amused, horrified, and touched at his reaction. “I was thinking now,” she answered his question. 

Lucifer nodded and moved over to the piano as the rest of the group sat down on the couches and he just started to play something soft and soothing, hoping it would help, but doubting it would help much if it all. He heard Chloe start the conversation by telling Trixie, “I was hoping you would talk to us a little about what it was like there.”

“Why?” she asked, voice high with tension. 

Linda took over there. “Because we’re your family and we want you to feel safe to talk to us. We want to help you, but we can’t do that unless we understand.”

“Maze knows what it’s like,” she mumbled.

Chloe held up a hand stopping Maze from replying just yet. “Yes, she does. And so does Amenadiel and, of course, Lucifer, but you remember how we’ve talked about how everyone sees things differently?” Trixie nodded. “We want to know how you saw it. How you felt. What you did.”

“There’s nothing you can say that would scare us, kiddo,” Maze told her. 

Trixie looked uncertainly at Lucifer who didn’t pause in his playing but gave her a look that was part encouraging smile and part understanding grimace and nodded at her. Trixie pulled her legs up on the couch and Lucifer bit back his comment about shoes on his Italian leather, knowing that he was going to have to give up on that one anyway. When she wrapped her arms around her legs and rested her head on them, she took a deep breath and began to talk. “It was…so hot there. I could hardly breathe and there was…ashes falling from the sky like rain all the time. They made me cough a lot. And…and there was screaming…so much screaming…it didn’t stop…”

Lucifer saw her starting to fall apart as her hands went over her ears, so he played a little bridge that morphed into The Unforgiven, and started to sing and she visibly relaxed. Chloe was the only one other than Trixie that got it, and she sent him a grateful look as Trixie continued. “When…whenever it would get too bad Lucifer would…would wrap his wings around me and sing that song so I couldn’t hear the…the screams so much.” 

Lucifer squirmed uncomfortably at the grateful looks that he was getting, and turned his attention back to the piano. “Lucifer said there was a lot of fighting…” Dan coaxed her. 

“Yeah. I didn’t see much. His wings were always covering me, but I…I could hear it. He…he tried to hide when he was hurt but…but I could tell. And I could…could see the cuts and stuff on him after. He…he kept saying he was fine and it didn’t hurt, but I knew it did and it was my fault,” she started sobbing as she finally said what she had been trying to keep inside. “It was all my fault. If I hadn’t gone. If I hadn’t wanted him back so badly, he wouldn’t have been hurt. He was just trying to protect me and he shouldn’t have had to…I…I’m so sorry auntie Maze. I tried to fight. I really did.” 

Lucifer had stopped playing abruptly as soon as she said that it was her fault and he stared at her in shock for a good minute as the words kept spilling out of her mouth until he couldn’t listen anymore. He rushed over and knelt in front of her, putting both his hands to either side of her face, not even noticing or caring that, other than protecting her, it was the first time he had initiated any contact between them. “Listen to me carefully, little urchin. Nothing that happened down there was your fault. It was MY choice to protect you and I would do it again and again. It was my father’s fault for sending you. Not yours. You couldn’t have known what would happen, but he did. He knew and he sent you anyway. You don’t hold any blame here, alright?” 

“I told him to send me,” she whispered the secret she had never told him before. “He said…he said it would be dangerous, but I told him to send me anyway. I just wanted you to come home so bad…I didn’t mean to hurt you. I’m sorry.”

“/You/ did not hurt me, child. They did. My father did. You were and are an innocent that my father should never have gotten involved. Take it from me. Don’t try to take responsibility for things you aren’t responsible for. Your mother taught me that one,” he told her with a smile and was encouraged when she smiled back. Just a little bit. 

“I’m still sorry,” she said with a sniffle. 

“Don’t be sorry for my sake, urchin. Things for me turned out for the best. I’m home and I get to stay, and every bit of it was worth it from my side. I just wish you didn’t have to suffer for it,” he told her and was caught off guard when she jumped at him to hug him. He patted her back uncomfortably and really wished she wasn’t rubbing her snot on the shoulder of his Versaci shirt, but wasn’t about to push her away. 

When she did pull back and sit back down on the couch, he reached out and with two fingers pulled the shirt away from his skin. “Must you soil me so, wretch?” 

Trixie giggled and said, “Sorry, Lucifer.”

He huffed and replied, “Now /that/ I will accept your apologies for. If you’ll excuse me…I need to go change.”


	11. Chapter 11

Lucifer stepped into his bedroom area and around the corner where he couldn’t be seen from the living room as he stripped off his shirt and tossed it to the chair to be sent for dry-cleaning. He took a deep shaky breath and put his hand on the wall to steady himself. 

Chloe noticed that Lucifer had gone the opposite direction of the closet and frowned worriedly and when he didn’t come back after a moment she kissed the top of Trixie’s head and got up to go after him. They had reached a good point for a break anyway. She stepped into the room and could immediately tell that he wasn’t doing well. She stepped up behind him and placed a hand on his bare back and he jumped before turning around to face her with a seemingly easy smile on his face. “Just trying to decide what shirt to wear, love.”

“Lucifer, don’t,” she said firmly, but gently. 

“Don’t what? Wear a shirt? Very well, if you insist.”

“Lucifer…don’t shut me out. Talk to me. Please,” she asked him hopefully. 

Lucifer sighed and turned back to the wall. It was so much easier to talk without looking at her. “Do you have any idea what it’s like to hear her falling apart, not over what she went through, not over her own horrors, but for /me/. For the devil. The root of all evil. Why would she care? How could she?” 

Chloe had long ago noticed that the only times he ever managed to open up to her, he had his back to her, so she didn’t try to get him to look at her and just walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around him, resting her cheek between his shoulderblades. “Because she’s smarter than most. And more observant. She sees what the rest of us see. That you are not, in any way, evil.”

“Even you hated me at first,” he pointed out.

“I did. Because all I could see was the mask that you put on. The person you pretend to be and I was too blind to see behind it, but as soon as I did Lucifer, I fell in love with you, because you are so much more than you pretend to be. For example, you pretend to be selfish, and you are in many ways, but when it really matters…when the chips are down, you are just as selfless as you accuse me of being. This entire situation is proof of that. You protected her with everything you had, nearly with your very life, and because she loves you that hurt her too. Just as it hurts me when you’re hurt or it hurts you when I’m hurt,” she tried to explain as she pressed a kiss to the center of his back.

“But I’m not worth it,” he told her. 

She flashed back to the first time he told her that, just before their first kiss and couldn’t help but wince as she remembered what she told him then. “You told me that before and I told you that you were probably right, but I was wrong. And you’re wrong. You’re worth it, Lucifer. You’re worth everything, and someday I will get you to believe that.”

He gave a harsh laugh, but turned around, mask fully back in place and kissed her hard. “Now that, my love, will be a true miracle.” He slipped out of her arms and grabbed a shirt, slipping it on as he headed back out of the bedroom and back to the piano. 

Chloe sighed, but followed him. She both loved and hated how he did that. He could only manage to drop his guard for a little while at a time before he slammed it back up, but she always knew that he only ever dropped it with her and that made it okay. They were getting there. As long as he could let her in, even a little, they would be okay. 

Lucifer was again playing random soothing melodies as Chloe sat next to Trixie, who was relaxing again now that Lucifer was back in the room. “He’s not really mad about the shirt, is he?” she whispered worriedly to her mom. Deep down she knew he wasn’t, but her insecurity was hitting her hard right now. 

“Of course not, Monkey. He just has a bad habit of blaming himself for things that he’s not responsible for too,” she whispered conspiratorially. She wanted to make sure that Trixie knew she was telling the truth about the shirt, so she had to give her something. 

Dan, on her other side, heard both the question and the response, but he’d known the answer to the question too. He knew a strategic retreat when he saw one, and now that he was looking beyond the surface, he saw a lot more than Lucifer would have liked, but he was a detective for a reason. He had to admit, devil or not, Chloe had made a good choice. 

Trixie relaxed at her mother’s reassurance before remembering something she said before. “I’m sorry, auntie Maze, but I lost your blades.”

Maze snorted. “S’okay squirt. I’ve got plenty.”

“You would have been proud of her Mazikeen,” Lucifer said, not pausing in the melody he was playing. “She managed to take out two of them before the other eleven overwhelmed her.”

Maze smirked. “Nice job, kid,” she reached out to ruffle Trixie’s hair. “For that I’ll make sure to give you good replacements.”

Dan and Chloe shared a look of horror at the track of the conversation. Their baby had been forced to kill to save her life. Granted it was demons, but they were sentient and looked relatively human. Dan cut his eyes to Linda in silent question and Chloe gave an almost perceptible nod. Therapy was definitely happening. 

Lucifer looked at the clock and realized that it was getting close to lunchtime so excused himself to make a call before coming back and telling them that lunch would arrive in an hour and the locksmith would be here soon after. “Locksmith? For what?” Dan asked curiously. 

“To put a lock on the elevator. If the detective and her spawn are going to be living here, we can’t have just anyone coming in and out all the time,” Lucifer told them. 

Trixie’s face brightened more than it had since they had gotten home. “Really! We get to live here now!? That is so COOL!” she bounced in her seat. 

Chloe just groaned and pinched the bridge of her nose. That was not the way she would have planned on telling everyone the news, but Lucifer is Lucifer. “What? Should I not have mentioned it?” he asked genuinely confused and a little hurt that she wanted to hide it. 

“No, it’s fine,” Chloe told him. “I just wanted to break the news a little more gently is all.” 

“You say that like it’s a bad thing, darling,” Lucifer replied. 

“Not a bad thing. It’s a good thing. Just a good delicate thing,” she rolled her eyes. 

“Can I talk to you Chloe?” Dan said motioning to the balcony and she nodded, following him out there as Lucifer frowned after them. 

Linda reached out and put a hand on his arm. “Remember, Lucifer, that Trixie is his daughter and while moving in with you is Chloe’s decision, he as every right to voice any concerns he has.”

“I know that,” Lucifer said more harshly than he intended. Maze pulled Trixie over to the bar to give the doctor and Lucifer their privacy and Amenadiel joined them, knowing that Lucifer wouldn’t be comfortable talking in front of him. 

“I know you know that, Lucifer, but what is really bothering you?” she asked. 

“Nothing. I just don’t like people trying to change her mind for their own selfish reasons,” he said shortly. 

Linda smiled. “You’re afraid he’s going to change her mind?” she asked to confirm and the glare she got from Lucifer was all the confirmation she needed. 

“And what about your mind? Are you sure that /you’ve/ thought this through? It seems rather sudden,” she bit the bullet. 

“Sudden? I’ve been in love with her for years here on Earth. You’re the one who beat that into my head often enough and I missed her for…” he cut himself off but she heard what he meant to say. 

“Forty or fifty years if my math is right. And that’s just what I mean. Are you sure that you haven’t built up some idyllic fantasy in your head that the real thing just won’t live up to?” 

“Fantasy or reality, all I want is her doctor. All I /need/ is her. Nothing else matters,” Lucifer admitted tensely. 

She smiled and nodded. “Then I’m happy for you Lucifer. And you should know that if she sure of her decision, he won’t be able to talk her out of it, and if she’s not, then would you really begrudge her for needing more time?” 

Lucifer sighed. “No. I wouldn’t. I would wait forever for her. But…”

“You’ve got your hopes up now, and it will hurt for them to be dashed,” Linda suggested and Lucifer nodded. “You just have to have faith…” she was cut off by a snort from Lucifer, “in /her/” she finished. Lucifer didn’t get a chance to reply as Dan and Chloe chose that moment to return inside.


	12. Chapter 12

As soon as they were on the balcony, Chloe turned to Dan and said, “Don’t try to talk me out of this.”

Dan held up his hands in surrender. “I’m not. Not really, I mean. I know that I haven’t always been a fan of Lucifer, but after everything he did for Trix…I mean, the protecting her and keeping her safe is one thing, but taking care of her when she was hurt, hurting himself to make her feel better like flying on broken wings so she can sleep, the singing to her to drown out the screams…that’s above and beyond and he has my eternal gratitude. You were right when you said that he’s not what I think and I see that now.”

“Then what?” Chloe asked curiously.

“It’s just…I know you think you’re doing the right thing, but are you sure that you’ve thought this through? I know he’s a good guy and I think you two are good together but isn’t this moving a little fast? I mean, he just got back from who knows how long in hell and you’ve never even been on a date.”

“I get that, Dan, really, but we love each other. He spent fifty years in hell missing me, and while my year and a half missing him wasn’t nearly as long, it was still just as much hell as what he went through. We’ve lost so much time due to one thing or another and I don’t want to lose another second,” Chloe practically begged him to understand. 

“But that’s what I mean. I’m not doubting your feelings, or even his anymore, but you have to admit he’s notoriously unreliable. What happens when something spooks him and he takes off again and comes home with another stripper wife. Not to even mention the question of whether he is even capable of monogamy. This is still the guy who slept with a hundred people a month. Who had near constant orgies while he was with Eve. If you tell me that he’s made you promises regarding all this, then I’ll accept that. Even I know that he doesn’t lie. I just don’t want you to go into this blind and get hurt, Chloe. And I don’t want Trixie to be hurt if this goes south.”

Chloe swallowed heavily. Dan did have a point. Just because she thought that the fact that they loved each other trumped everything else, that didn’t mean that Lucifer did. “I see your point, but I’m not backing down. Not yet. I will talk to Lucifer about all this and then see where we stand. You’re right that I’ve just been assuming a lot, and this is a conversation we need to have before everything is set in stone.”

“That’s all I ask,” Dan said seriously putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder before they went back inside. 

Lucifer noticed that Chloe was on edge after coming back and he wanted to ask her what was wrong, but there were too many people around. Besides, he was pretty sure that he knew. She changed her mind. The douche convinced her to change her mind. He got up and poured another glass of whiskey and tossed it back, just as the elevator dinged with the food delivery. After a rather stilted lunch, Linda said that they should probably get going, but Lucifer told them to stay. “The locksmith will be here any minute and I don’t particularly want to run all over town delivering keys.”

He was right and the locksmith arrived ten minutes later and Lucifer asked for ten keys. Chloe did some counting and realized that they only needed seven. “Why ten?” she asked curiously. 

“One for everyone here. Ms. Lopez might as well have one too, and the contractors will need one…” he trailed off as he realized there might not be a need for contractors after all. 

Chloe just nodded and squeezed his hand. “Okay. And some spares could always come in handy anyway.” Once Lucifer handed out the keys, everyone left, Dan leaving with Maze so he could quiz her more on hell to better understand what his daughter had went through. 

Once they were gone and it was just the three of them again, Lucifer sighed and refilled his whiskey before he went out to the balcony and leaned over the railing, lighting a cigarette. Chloe gave Trixie a look and she nodded and picked up the TV remote. She had noticed Lucifer being upset too, and her mother not much better. 

Chloe stepped up behind Lucifer and put a hand on his back, but before she could speak, he cut her off. “I know you changed your mind. About living here I mean. I hope you haven’t changed your mind about…about us…”

Chloe sighed and wrapped her arm around his waist, moving up next to him to put her head on his shoulder. “I have no intention of ever changing my mind about us, Lucifer, and I haven’t really changed my mind about living together either, but Dan reminded me of some things that we need to talk about first.”

Lucifer took a long drag off of his cigarette. “Like what?” he asked, trying not to betray his worry. 

“Like the way you tend to run off whenever things get real,” she said gently. 

“I did that once, and there’s more to that than you know,” Lucifer reminded her. “And it’s not like I’m the only one guilty of that particular transgression. At least I never tried to kill you.” Chloe choked and took a step back. She had thought that they were past that. 

When he noticed her reaction, he realized what he said and winced. He took one more quick drag from his cigarette before tossing it and turning to look at her. “I’m sorry, Chloe. I shouldn’t have said that. I know that you were manipulated and that you’re sorry.”

She shook her head. “But obviously it still bothers you, so we need to talk about it.”

He gave a wry smile. “It will always bother me, love, but I’m past it. It’s just…” he gave a long-suffering sigh. “I have a bad habit of striking back when people try to make me feel guilty about past discretions, but you don’t deserve that and you have every right to question my actions. You’re the only one that has that right.”

Chloe felt the smile creeping onto her face as she moved back up next to him, returning to her previous position, and this time he wrapped his arm around her waist as well as he looked out over the city. “I still am sorry. That is and will always be the biggest regret of my life and I will never forgive myself for it, whether you forgive me or not.” 

“Of course, I forgive you for it. How could I not?” Lucifer told her sincerely. 

“Just like I forgive you for Candy. And for running. I just…I need to know it’s not going to happen again. I don’t think I can take settling into a life with you and then…” she trailed off, unable to say the words. 

He was silent for a moment before he seemed to make a decision and he stood up straight, set his glass down on the railing and turned to her, taking both of her hands in his. “You’re right. I’ve asked you to move in with me without making you any promises or giving you any explanations, and that was remiss of me. You should know that it was not by intention, simply an oversight.”

She stopped him before he could say any more. “Lucifer, I don’t need any big grand gestures, here. I just need to know that we’re on the same page is all. I need to know that you’ll be here with me and only with me.”

Lucifer bit back a joke about leaving the child out, knowing that now wasn’t the time for jokes. It was time for him to go all in because she deserved no less. “Detective…no…Chloe,” he said gently. “You should know by now that I’m a very intense devil. I don’t do anything halfway. I freely admit that I can waffle more than a little if I’m not committed, but once I am…nothing will stand in my way, and I am committed to you, my love. I am yours and only yours, heart, soul, body, and everything in between for as long as you will have me and I could only be so lucky as for that to be for the rest of your life,” he said seriously, gazing into her eyes and hoping that she could read just how serious he was. 

Chloe could feel her heart beating out of her chest as his completely heartfelt confession. She could see in his eyes that he was completely laying himself bare to her and it was intoxicating. She pulled her hands from his and threw them around his neck and kissed him desperately. When they broke apart, she knew that she had to say something in response to that. “You need to know, Lucifer, that I…I feel the same way. I mean I know I can’t be with you for the rest of your life, no matter how much I wish I could, but I can only hope that I will have you for the rest of mine. It’s funny, I never thought of my lifetime as too short before, but now that I know you, and know that you will go on forever…I know any time I have with you will never be enough, but all the time I have is yours.”

Lucifer closed his eyes against the feelings washing over him as he pulled her close and buried his face in her hair and he could feel her hot tears falling against his neck. “I will love you forever, Chloe,” he whispered. 

“I will love you forever too, Lucifer,” Chloe replied burrowing deeper into his arms.


	13. Chapter 13

“Just to make sure we are…on the same page, as you say. You are still planning to move in here?” Lucifer asked after a few minutes. 

Chloe pulled back and looked at him. “Absolutely.” The warm feeling she felt when he grinned happily washed away any doubts she could possibly still have after that. “I am curious though…it doesn’t have anything to do with my decision. That won’t change, but you said there was more than I knew about the situation around Candy?” 

Lucifer chuckled wryly and turned to look back over the city, clueing Chloe in on the fact that this would be difficult for him to talk about. “Do you remember, after the whole murderous scientist debacle, when you were so happy to see me and I asked you if it was actually real?” 

“I remember. I had been so afraid that I lost you when I was just beginning to fall for you, and your reaction there gave me hope that you were starting to feel the same way.”

“I /did/ feel the same way, detective, and I had never been happier. Then I got a call from my mother who needed to speak to me. I told her I didn’t care what she had to say and I was too happy to let her get me down and then I spotted a picture on the wall. If she hadn’t called me to meet her at that particular bar then maybe…maybe we could have had this years ago, but she did.”

“What picture?” she asked confused. What could an old picture in a bar have to do with anything?

“Amenadiel and your mother when she was young,” Lucifer said with a sigh. 

“What? How? Why?” she stammered. 

“It seemed that your mother had been barren, but my father tasked Amenadiel with giving her a miracle. You. He put you in my path intentionally. Once I knew that, I had no idea what was real and what wasn’t anymore. Was everything just a trick? A manipulation? Was he using you to try and break me? Did you ever even have a choice? It was that last one that led to Candy. I decided that you had never been given a choice in caring for me, that it was all his doing and I refused to let you be used like that, so I did what I thought I had to do to give you your choices back.”

“You were right about one thing. I didn’t ever have a choice in loving you, but not for the reasons you think, but because you are everything I’ve ever dreamed of, and maybe it is because I was made that way, but does it really matter? You make me happy, Lucifer, and that’s really all that matters.” She waited until she saw the smile creep onto his face before saying, “But did you really have to marry a stripper?” with a laugh. 

Lucifer chuckled too. “No. Not really. That’s not the only reason I married her. She was in trouble. Her father had died deeply in debt and she was about to lose everything and become essentially a slave to a high end bookie. I paid off her debts for her in return for her marrying me just long enough for her to get an in with my mother and find out what nefarious plans she had for me. I knew that my mother would be horrified at my choice and try to find out what I could possibly see in her, which gave Candy the in she needed. She gave me the information and we went our separate ways and got an annulment.”

Chloe blinked in shock as she turned that over in her head. “At least she knew that it was just for an arrangement up front,” she told both herself and him. “I guess, as long as she knew that you were using her and had no problem with it, it’s not so bad.”

Lucifer laughed. “Make no mistake, detective. She was using me too. It was mutually beneficial. What bookie would risk harming the wife of Lucifer Morningstar, after all?”

Chloe chuckled along with him. He definitely had a point. “Anything else you’re curious about, my dear detective?” 

“What happened with Eve? I mean, I know why you two split up and all, but how did it happen to begin with?”

Lucifer sighed again. He hated how she kept bringing up these painful subjects, but he supposed it was rather necessary. He wanted her to understand him. They had lost too much time due to misunderstandings, and it was reasonable to talk about previous relationship history when things became serious. At least, as far as he’d heard. “I had a lot of time to think about that in hell. She caught me at a really bad time. I had just found out about…well…you know, and then she showed up at Lux. She had quite literally, just fallen from the sky, and she had nothing and nowhere to go, so I told her she could stay with me for a while until we could get her on her feet. It wasn’t the first time I’d done something like that, so I didn’t think anything of it. The next thing I know, a few days later she’s using my toothbrush and calling me her boyfriend. I was so hurt and lonely I just went along with it. I let her do as she wished, not that I didn’t enjoy the constant orgies and everything, but it was just so much. It was better than hurting though, so I threw myself into it. And before you say anything, I know that it wasn’t fair to her, but honestly, what she did wasn’t fair to me either. You should know that one thing I hate more than anything is to be manipulated and that’s just what she did. The more you and I began to move past what happened the worse it got. She kept trying to convince me that you just wanted to change me and would never accept me and that she was the only one that could accept me, but she was trying to change me too. She wanted me to go back to the monster I used to be…and I just…it was a mess. /I/ was a mess.”

Chloe took a long moment to consider things and wrap her head around it before she spoke. “I get it. And I understand everything that you did during that time much better now. You were being pulled in two different directions and that must have been difficult. You’re right though. For a little while I was trying to change you. Get you to stop drinking so much and be more charitable to people, but I realized that I was wrong. There’s nothing wrong with your drinking. To a human perspective it’s more than a little excessive, but you’re not human. It doesn’t even make you drunk. And you are excessively charitable, just in different ways than I usually see, so there was never anything I needed to change, and I’m sorry that I didn’t see that at first.”

Lucifer snorted amusedly, ignoring the difficult parts of that statement. “I have managed to get drunk a few times. It’s not easy, but there is a limit to even my tolerance.”

She laughed. “That’s just what I mean though. At the time I was looking at you through human eyes and you seemed like a drunk, but you’re not. Hell, I’ve probably been drunk more than you have.”

Lucifer smirked at her, “Must we bring my previous accommodations into the conversation?” 

She shook her head in amusement. “You do realize that omitting all references from god, heaven, hell, etc from my speech is not going to be easy.” She knew that he was mostly joking, but it did actually bother him a little bit, so she would try. She just wanted him to know that she would and that it would take time for her to get out of those habits. Lucifer just picked up his drink to sip and gave her a lop-sided smile that told her that he got what she was saying. “Something else I’m curious about…why don’t you call me by my name more often? Or anyone even?”

Lucifer slumped a little bit. “Does that bother you? That I don’t call you by your name often?” 

“I wouldn’t say it bothers me, but it does make me wonder why? I can’t really know if it bothers me until I know the answer to that,” she admitted. 

“Well, you’re a little different in that respect. To begin with it was a reminder to myself that you weren’t for me. That I needed to keep my distance emotionally. I’d been drawn to you almost from the start, but you didn’t like me, so I put up that wall. Now though…well…a lot of it is habit, and some of it is just because it’s become so…us. It’s like a part of our relationship that I don’t want to lose even as we move forward.”

Chloe nodded. It made sense and she noticed that when he did call her by her name, it was always during the most emotional moments and that almost made it seem more special. “Okay. I can understand that. And to answer your question, now that I can…no, it doesn’t bother me.” She had noticed that the walls hadn’t been there for a long time, and she did love the thrill that shot through her every time he did use her name and knew that if he took to using it all the time it would lose that. “But you said I was different, so there’s another reason you don’t call anyone else by their names. Well I’ve noticed that you call Maze and Amenadiel by their names…” she trailed off in thought as she started to piece things together but he helped her out anyway. 

“It’s…difficult…with humans. You live such short lives, just a blink of an eye to us immortals, and only the most special become anything more than passing acquaintances. In a way I guess it is like the situation with you in that it helps me to keep my distance, but the reasons are very different.”

Chloe tightened her arm around his waist and leaned her head on his shoulder as tears filled her eyes. She had never considered it like that before. That their lives…her life, even, was so fleeting in his eyes. The fact that he got so close and was willing to open up and truly love her meant so much more now that she saw that. “Thank you, Lucifer,” she whispered. “For letting me in, for giving me a chance to love you. I just wish…” she choked up a bit. 

“You wish what?” he asked softly. 

“I wish…that you didn’t have to lose me. That I could be with you forever,” she finished, curling up tighter to his side. 

He smiled ruefully. “So do I, darling. So do I.”

That was when she realized that her life really would be it. All they could ever have. He was banned from heaven and sealed out of hell. When she died, her soul would live for eternity away from him. Suddenly she wished she never knew the truth about any of it. Then at least she would still have hope. She forced the thoughts from her mind for now though. She knew that if she fell apart on him, he would blame himself. He was far too good at that. She would think more on this later. She didn’t know if I solution was possible, but she had every intention of looking for one.


	14. Chapter 14

They stood there in silence for a few minutes, just enjoying each other’s presence before Chloe said, “One more thing we should talk about before we go back in.” 

“What’s that, love?” he asked.

“I really need to go back to work tomorrow, now that Trixie is home and everything is okay.”

“Alright. I’ll come with you then,” he said hopefully. 

“You can’t,” she said sadly, and when she saw the hurt look on his face, she rushed to clarify. “It’s not that I don’t enjoy working with you. I do. I would love nothing more than for you to come back to work with me, but…Trixie. She can’t be away from you yet, and we can’t exactly bring her to work. I know it’s a lot to ask, and you may not be ready for this part of our relationship yet, but I need you to stay with Trixie. I can ask Maze to come over too, if you’re not ready to be with her alone, but she really needs you to be nearby.”

“I was alone with her for months. I’m sure I can handle it,” he drawled. 

“I know, but it’s a little different here. If you think you’ll be okay though, then I trust you. Also, I want her to start seeing Linda for a few hours every day. On a professional basis. Will you take her?”

“I suppose I could be bothered to do so,” he rolled his eyes and her lips twitched. She stopped buying that act a long time ago.

“Thank you, Lucifer. Linda said to bring her by around two in the afternoon,” Chloe told him and Lucifer nodded. “Now that’s settled, we should head back in. I can see her starting to get jittery and she’s been watching us for a while.”

Lucifer turned to look at the child and noticed that Chloe was right, so he held out his arm for her and she took it with a grin as he escorted her back inside. As soon as he sat down on the couch, he had a lapful of Trixie as she cuddled him. He shifted uncomfortably, but made no effort to move her, especially since he could feel the tension leaving her as she laid her head on his shoulder. Lucifer’s arm came up protectively around her…just so that he could keep her from falling off if she got too relaxed, mind. 

Chloe beamed at the sight and moved to sit on the other side of Lucifer, curling up to his side as his other arm went around her and she reached out to run a hand through Trixie’s hair. It was a few minutes before Lucifer broke the silence. “If we must watch this infernal thing, can we at least watch something interesting?” he drawled, pulling a giggle from Trixie. 

Chloe rolled her eyes amusedly. “As long as it’s child appropriate.”

“Define child appropriate,” Lucifer asked with a raised eyebrow. 

Chloe sighed, realizing that the definition of that phrase had definitely changed since Lucifer and Maze had entered her life, but she still felt the need to enforce some concept of moderation. “No gratuitous nudity or sex,” was the only line that she could still reasonably call. She knew that too much violence wouldn’t be good for Trixie right now, but, unlike Maze, Lucifer wasn’t much for violent movies. When Lucifer nodded, she grabbed the remote, seeing as he didn’t have a free hand available and started browsing through the channels. It took a little while but eventually they found something they could all agree on. 

The stress that Trixie had been under showed when she was dozing on Lucifer’s shoulder within the first half hour of the movie and she couldn’t help the contented smile that graced her face. If she didn’t think about the horror that her baby had been through to cause this, this moment here was everything she would have ever dreamed. She snuggled tighter against Lucifer and gave a happy sigh and even the devil couldn’t help but smile in happiness. 

After the movie, he realized that it was almost time for dinner, so he shifted the sleeping child to her mother’s lap and got up to start cooking. Trixie groaned at the shift, and not long after he had started dinner she started whimpering and twitching in a nightmare. Chloe looked sadly at her before looking to Lucifer for help. It took him a minute to realize what she was asking, but then he started to hum as he cooked, and Trixie quickly settled down. 

Chloe woke her up for dinner before trying to send her to bed, but the tantrum she threw at that quickly had her caving and they put on another movie as she went back to sleep on Lucifer’s lap. Thankfully, Lucifer was also still not completely recovered from the experience. It would take more than one night to catch up on three months worth of sleep, after all, and by the end of the movie, he was starting to nod off too, so Chloe shuffled them all to bed. She wasn’t exactly tired yet, but she couldn’t think of anything that would make her happier than to just lay down with them for however long it took her to get tired. 

The position they had was much the same as on the couch and Lucifer had a head on each shoulder and both of his arms were pinned. Just as Chloe noticed his breath evening out in sleep, his wings spontaneously came to life and wrapped around them both, meeting over his stomach. She stifled her chuckle. It seemed his subconscious wasn’t nearly as invested in shrugging off his protectiveness as his conscious mind was. She just laid there with him, enjoying the feel of his wings wrapped around her, and thinking that she could definitely get used to this. She wasn’t sure how long it was until she drifted off to sleep, but when she woke up she looked at the clock to see that it was about twenty minutes before her alarm. 

She snuggled closer to Lucifer once more, pressing a kiss to his chest before trying to get up, but finding that the wing was surprisingly stronger than it looked and after a little bit of squirming and not getting anywhere, she resigned herself to the inevitable. She leaned up and pressed a soft kiss to Lucifer’s lips, and when he instinctively leaned into it without waking she felt that warmth spread through her that was rapidly becoming nearly constant. Still, she needed him to let her go, and only partially so she could get ready for work, so she whispered, “Lucifer, sweetheart, I need to get up.” 

He groaned and one eye creaked open to look at her. She suppressed her smirk when she noticed his embarrassment about the wings that he quickly covered up, before unfolding it. “Thank you, love. Go back to sleep. I just need to get ready for work,” she whispered, pressing one more soft kiss to his lips before he did as she said and she slipped into the bathroom. 

It wasn’t until she got out of the shower that she realized she had nothing to wear. She hadn’t even thought to bring any clothes and she pondered the problem for a moment before grinning and moving to Lucifer’s closet. It didn’t take her long to realize the problem though. Pretty much everything he owned was tailored suits. She settled for grabbing a pair of his boxer-briefs which hung pretty much like regular shorts on her and one of his dress shirts and resigned herself to swinging by her apartment on the way to change and grab a bag for both herself and Trixie. She looked at the time and realized that she was going to have to hurry if she wanted to have time for all that, so she skipped breakfast, deciding to grab a protein bar instead and headed out. 

By the time she walked into the station, wearing her own pants, but still in Lucifer’s shirt, she was met with a hug from Ella. “You’re back! Yay! Where’s Lucifer? Is he not coming back? I thought he would…”

Chloe cut her off with a laugh. “He’ll be back eventually, but Trixie still needs him for now. He’ll be taking her to her therapy appointment this afternoon and as soon as she can handle being away from him, he’ll be coming back to work.”

Ella started bouncing. “Yay! I’ve missed him. Not as much as you have I’m sure. I bet Trixie’ll be fine in no time. Doctor Linda is really good.”

Chloe nodded and said, “Oh! Before I forget. Lucifer insisted that you have this. Not that I objected, of course, but here.” She handed her the key. She wanted Ella to know that Lucifer cared, but knew that it was difficult for him to show it, which is why she worded things the way she did, but then Ella looked at the key in confusion. “Oh, right. Sorry. I should have told you that he fit the elevator to the penthouse with a lock since Trixie and I will be living there and we wanted you to have a key.” 

“Oh my god!” Ella squealed, hugging her again and bouncing them both. “You’re moving in together? That is sooo perfect!” 

Chloe laughed again and Ella finally let go, allowing her to go meet with the Lieutenant since she had taken so much time off with no notice.


	15. Chapter 15

Chloe knocked on the door and stepped into the office when she was beckoned. “I’m glad your daughter was found safely,” she said sympathetically. 

“Thank you,” Chloe said with a smile. 

“I understand your old partner is back. Is that permanent?” She asked. 

“Yeah. He’s back for good now.”

“Will he be coming back to the department?” 

“He’s hoping to at some point, assuming he’s still allowed,” Chloe told her, hoping herself. 

“Absolutely. He can come in today if he wants.”

“Actually, there’s a bit of an issue and he won’t be able to for at least a few days, maybe a few weeks,” she said apologetically. 

“What kind of issue?” the lieutenant asked concerned. 

“Well, I’m guessing Dan told you how she snuck out and went to Lucifer?” When she nodded, Chloe continued. “What he probably didn’t say is that she didn’t quite make it all the way. She was attacked and it was pure luck that Lucifer was happening by and managed to stop it before she was killed. After he saved her and took care of her injuries, he flew her straight back here, but ever since he saved her she’s terrified to be out of his sight. We’re getting her therapy, in fact, Lucifer is taking her to her first appointment today, but until she can stand to be away from him, he needs to be with her.”

The lieutenant nodded. “I understand completely. I can’t imagine how difficult this must be for all of you. I wish I could give you more time off, but we’re really shorthanded here and the cases are piling up.”

“No, it’s okay. The crisis is over, so I’m good to be back to work. I do…um…have a quick question for you though,” she asked with a blush and the lieutenant raised an eyebrow at her. “What’s…um…the policy about…about a detective dating a civilian consultant?” 

The Lieutenant resisted the urge to laugh. It was completely obvious that this was going to come up sooner or later. “There are no rules against it, but if it affects the job I would need to separate you.”

“It won’t affect the job,” Chloe assured her. “And thanks,” she said getting up and heading out to start sorting the backlog of cases. 

It was almost ten AM before Trixie started to wake up, waking Lucifer up with her and the devil quickly tucked his wings away. “Well, urchin. Looks like it’s just you and me today. What would you like for breakfast?” 

“Pancakes!” she said happily, and loudly enough to make Lucifer wince. “With chocolate chips and blueberries.” 

Lucifer blinked at her for a moment. He’d never actually heard of pancakes with both of those ingredients, but if that’s what the child wanted then he would oblige. When he looked at the clock he realized that it was closer to lunchtime, but just shrugged it off. It didn’t much matter. He whipped up some pancakes along with bacon and omelets, managing to keep Trixie from ruining any of it this time, other than the fact that there were far more chocolate chips than were healthy in the pancakes. After a leisurely breakfast, Trixie offered to help with the dishes, and Lucifer hesitated, before nodding. It was good china tableware, but it could be replaced if needed. Money was only money, and it wasn’t like he was running out. 

That train of thought reminded him that he would need to pack up all of his irreplaceable belongings today and move them elsewhere, and once the dishes were clean, he proceeded to do just that. “Can I help?” Trixie asked hopefully. 

“Not with this, child,” Lucifer told her. 

“But I’ll be really really careful. I promise,” she begged. 

Lucifer sighed. He was beginning to see what the detective meant about being different watching her up here. There was less danger and more…exuberance. He realized that he needed to find something for her to do, and only took a moment to think of something. “There is something you can do to help me,” he told her and she looked at him hopefully. “The contractors will be here in about an hour to start on your room. If you can manage to push the couches and chairs over to that wall it would be helpful. They won’t be too heavy for you will they?” 

“Nope. I can do it,” she said assuredly. Lucifer wasn’t familiar enough with the strength of children to know that she shouldn’t have been able to do so and contented himself with the fact that she did. 

By the time all the furniture was pushed out of the way, other than his office furniture, he had just finished packing the last box of priceless artifacts and handwritten books. “I’m going to run this stuff downstairs to my car. While I’m doing that, you can put these sheets over the furniture, but leave the office alone. I can do that when I get back,” he told her and noticed how nervous she looked about him leaving, but when she nodded, he went downstairs. It took him three trips, and only that few thanks to his angelic strength before he was back upstairs and only had to adjust the furniture covers a little bit. 

He went over to the office and picked up the desk and moved it behind the bar, and then the almost empty curio cabinet and Trixie watched with wide eyes as he lifted the impossibly heavy items like it was nothing. Finally, he moved the piano over, further from the wall where the work would be done. Once all that was done, he looked around and nodded. “Now. We still have about half an hour before the contractors arrive. What would you like to do?” 

Trixie looked around for a few minutes before her eyes lit up. “Will you teach me to play piano?” she asked hopefully. 

He blinked at her for a moment before saying, “I’m afraid I’m not a very good teacher, urchin. But I would be happy to purchase you lessons from someone who is.”

Trixie pouted and asked, “Can you please teach me to play something? Even something easy? Pretty please?” 

Lucifer sighed. “Very well.” As they walked over to the piano he wracked his brain for something he could teach her that wouldn’t leave him wanting to pull his hair out and a smirk broke out on his face as he had an idea attached to a happy memory and he started teaching her the melody to Heart and Soul just like he had played it with her mother so long ago. She had just managed to get it mostly right when the elevator dinged, and he instinctively placed himself in front of Trixie before relaxing as the contractor stepped out. 

Lucifer had just enough time to show them where he wanted to door to the bedroom, the door to the outside, walled over, and the door on the other side into the bathroom made, and a sliding door to his bedroom installed, before they had to leave for Trixie’s appointment with Dr. Linda. The contractor assured him that it would be done by the end of the day tomorrow, and Lucifer nodded, deciding that it would be easier to stay at Chloe’s apartment until then. 

Lucifer made sure to leave enough time to swing by another of his properties nearby to leave his boxes on the way to the appointment. The child insisted on going in and out with him, not wanting to be out in the open in pubic alone, but he still refused to let her carry any of the boxes so she just walked next to him. They spent two hours with Linda in her office, and when Trixie spent much of it crying, he resisted the urge to yell at the doctor and wondered again why the detective insisted on putting her offspring through such things, but then remembered that this was supposed to get the child unattached to his hip, and only hoped that it worked. 

As they left, Lucifer called Chloe and told her that the contractors were working on the penthouse but they would be done tomorrow and suggested staying at her apartment, which she easily agreed. It would at least give them time to pack appropriately. Lucifer was surprised to see Maze glaring at him when he got to the apartment though. “Is there a problem, Mazikeen?” he asked glaring back at her, but the moment was interrupted when Trixie ran up and nearly tackled the demon with a hug and a cry of “Auntie Maze!”

Once Maze had greeted her, she returned to glaring at Lucifer who sighed and looked down at Trixie. “Perhaps you should go decide what you would like to bring with us from your room,” he suggested, knowing that whatever Maze’s problem was, she wasn’t likely to say anything in front of the child. 

As soon as they were alone, Maze slammed her hand down on the counter. “Damnit Lucifer. Do you ever think of anyone but yourself?” 

“Pardon?” he asked incredulously. He had just spent the entire day at the whims of a twelve year old, and she was accusing him of being selfish?

“We were happy here. Comfortable. Me and Chloe and Trixie. Now that’s all ruined,” she snapped. 

Lucifer’s first instinct was to snap back at her, but he forced calm. He remembered that Chloe had mentioned that this might be a problem, but he had no idea how to handle it. This was more the detective and the doctor’s purview. He did make an attempt not to make it worse though. Attempt being the operative word. “You do realize that when people fall in love they tend to move in together, correct?” 

“I know that, Lucifer. I’m not an idiot. But I thought I had more time. You’ve spent how long running from this and now you just jump in completely without sparing a thought to the home you’re breaking up.”

Lucifer struggled visibly for a moment. Talking about feelings with anyone but Chloe and to a lesser extent Doctor Linda was well outside his wheelhouse, but he felt the need to at least make an attempt. “You know how time passes in hell, Mazikeen,” he said emotionlessly and when she nodded, still glaring, he added. “You know how long I was there and the only thing I thought of in that time was the detective. I have no intention of wasting any time now, and the only person’s feelings on the matter I care about are hers.”

The demon sighed and softened at that. It seemed that the devil really wasn’t doing this on a whim, but still, “Do you know how hard it is to find a good roommate that isn’t going to run screaming at my knife collections or other toys?” she asked wearily. 

“There is no need for you to be burdened with a roommate, Maze,” Lucifer told her. “I would be happy to buy this apartment if you wish to stay here, or you can have your old apartment back downstairs at Lux. If you truly wish to have a roommate, you might see if Ms. Lopez would like to room with you. She does at least know of your origins so is less like to ‘run screaming’ as you say.”

Maze huffed. Sometimes it was so hard to stay mad at the devil. “Fine. I’ll think about it,” she said irritated. 

“Good,” he said with a note of finality. “Just let me know what you decide and what I can do for you.” 

That settled, he went to the kitchen to start making dinner. Chloe had told him that she should be home on time unless something came up in the two hours after he talked to her, so he wanted to make sure that dinner was waiting for her.


	16. Chapter 16

Once dinner was over, Trixie asked Lucifer to come watch a movie with her, and he sighed heavily, but let her drag him by the hand over to the couch and then perched in his lap as she started a movie called The Princess Diaries. Five minutes in, Lucifer was bored out of his mind. “You actually enjoy this drivel?” Lucifer asked incredulously. 

“Yep,” Trixie said happily. 

Lucifer sighed. “Would it offend you terribly if I at least found a book to read while we are sitting here?” he asked hopefully. 

Trixie seemed to think about it for a moment before shrugging. “Okay.” 

“Bless you, child,” he said, pushing her gently off his lap and going to his bag to get a book, not noticing that Chloe seemed about to burst into laughter at his predicament. 

Chloe held back her laughter as she finished straightening up the kitchen before she pulled Maze upstairs. She had noticed how quiet the demon had been during dinner, and she knew why. She also noticed the dumbfounded look on her face as she had watched the spectacle between Lucifer and Trixie, and at least this way she could laugh with impunity. As soon as her bedroom door closed behind her, she burst into laughter. 

“What was /that/?” Maze asked incredulously. She had seen him grudgingly accept affection from Trixie, and even allow her to sit with him when she was so afraid after hell, but this was…something so far out of her knowledge that she was completely struck dumb. 

It took Chloe a few minutes to get her laughter under control before she could answer the demon. “Sorry. I think I’m good now,” she said only to be betrayed by a few more giggles. “They’ve been like that for a few days. She’s terrified to leave his side for more than a few minutes at a time and even then he has to be in the next room, so he’s been…kind of…learning to deal with it. Personally, I think he needs her almost as much as she needs him. He just won’t admit it.” She felt horrible for laughing so hard at the terrible situation, but she just couldn’t help it. 

“I know hell isn’t the best place and I understand why it would be traumatic for Trixie, but Lucifer spent billions of years there. He shouldn’t have been affected like that,” she said confused.

Chloe snorted at the reminder that Maze needed nearly as much help with feelings as Lucifer did. “Yes, he spent billions of years ruling it. Not running for his life with an injured child in tow. I think what she went through haunts him more, but I don’t think he’s without his own issues there. She’s in therapy with Linda and since Lucifer needs to be near her, he’s there too, so I’m hoping that it will help them both.”

“But how do you and Lucifer get alone time to…you know…” she waggled her eyebrows and smirked. 

“We don’t,” Chloe huffed. “Not yet. I mean, I don’t begrudge my daughter the need to feel safe right now, after everything she’s been through, but I still want…”

“And he hasn’t said anything about it?” Maze asked, still amazed. She knew that he had been changing over the last few years, but for him to not be dying for sex was another thing completely beyond her understanding. 

Chloe shook her head. “No. And neither have I. It’s not that big of a deal. We’ll get there when we get there, and I /am/ enjoying the opportunity to just be with him like this too.”

“I don’t get you. Either of you,” she said. “If you need me to take the kiddo for a night or two I’d be happy to,” she offered with a grimace at the reminder that they wouldn’t be living here anymore. 

Chloe smiled and hugged her. “That would be great, Maze. Once she’s able to be away from Lucifer, I would definitely appreciate a little time. And I’m sorry that this whole moving out thing was just sprung on you like this. I intended to sit down and talk to you myself about it before it was announced to everyone.”

Maze snorted a laugh. “Haven’t you figured out by now? You can’t plan anything with Lucifer around. If you don’t tell him your plans, he messes them up by accident and if you do tell him he’s just as likely to throw a wrench in them for fun.”

Chloe laughed with her. “You have no idea. Some of the stories I could tell you about work…” She shared a few of the more amusing ones giving them a chance to just hang out and have fun before bringing the conversation back to the topic at hand. “One of my concerns when Lucifer asked me to move in was leaving you unprepared with this place, but you should know that he offered to buy it for you so you don’t have to worry about leaving if you don’t want to.”

“I know. He told me the same thing. He also said I could have my old apartment back behind Lux if I’d rather that.”

“Do you know which you want yet?” Chloe asked. 

“I’m thinking of staying here and seeing if Ella wants to be my roommate. This place is too big for me alone, but the apartment behind Lux just feels like I’d be moving backwards in my life, and since Ella is the only one unattached and in the know other than your ex…”

Chloe grinned. That would definitely be an odd match, but then so were she and Maze and Linda and Maze. Maze was just an odd match with anyone, but the perkiest, happiest lab tech in the world…she almost wished she wasn’t moving out just so she could see it. “That sounds perfect.”

“Yeah. And that way we can keep Trixie’s room as is for when she sleeps over,” Maze told her. 

“Perfect,” Chloe said, knowing that Maze wanted confirmation that Trixie would be able to stay here sometimes and Chloe had no problem with it. Maze may not be the best role-model, but she was dating the devil, so some things were inevitable and when it came to the important things, she trusted Maze with Trixie more than almost anyone else. “So now all that’s settled, you wanna help me pack up while the distractions are engrossed in a movie and/or book?” 

Maze shrugged. “Sure.” She started grabbing the folded down boxes out of the closet from when they moved in and handed a stack to Chloe. 

“Great. And then we can hit Trixie’s room after,” Chloe said. “We can probably leave a lot of her stuff and just get new stuff for the penthouse, but she’ll want to have at least some of her stuff with her.”

Maze chuckled. “Lucifer already had her go pack up what she wanted to take, but another look through wouldn’t hurt and you have to know that he would be thrilled to buy her all new stuff. If there’s one thing he loves it’s spending money, no matter who it’s on.”

“I’ve noticed,” Chloe said wryly, remembering the time that he bought her a hundred dollar doll just because she said she wanted it. And that was before they got so close. Suddenly she remembered something about a decorator coming for her new room after the contractors were done and made a mental note to remind him about moderation.

It only took them about an hour to get everything she wanted to take packed up. She was leaving all of the furniture of course since she wouldn’t need it and since none of it was family heirlooms or anything special, she had no reason to take it. 

By the time they got back downstairs the movie was ending and Trixie was putting on Ella Enchanted. Lucifer looked at the DVD box and wrinkled his nose in distaste before turning back to his book, seeming to not notice when Trixie climbed back in his lap, but the arm that wrapped around her betrayed the fact. Chloe just smiled and ran a hand through Lucifer’s hair as she walked by and he looked up at her and grabbed her hand, kissing her palm and slowing her progress, but she wasn’t complaining in the slightest. 

It didn’t take long to check Trixie’s work and add a lot more of her clothes to the almost none she had packed up, before she went out to the couch and curled up to Lucifer’s side, lifting Trixie’s feet to put in her lap and Lucifer leaned over and kissed her head as she leaned it on his shoulder. He didn’t put his book down to hold her, but he leaned his head against hers to let her know she was welcome. Chloe didn’t mind. She knew that asking Lucifer to actually watch a movie like this would be cruel and unusual punishment, and she attempted to hold back the laugh at that thought, but it came out as more of a snort. 

He turned away from his book to look at her questioningly and she couldn’t help a full giggle before she whispered, “I wonder how many people’s hells involve watching movies like this on repeat.” 

Lucifer chuckled and whispered back, “A lot.”


	17. Chapter 17

By the time the movie was over Trixie had fallen asleep, and Chloe got up and motioned Lucifer to put Trixie in her bed before he followed her upstairs. As soon as the bedroom door closed behind her, Lucifer swept her up into a searing kiss that made her knees go weak, and by the time it ended, she could feel how badly he wanted her and she wanted him just as badly. “Hold that thought…for just a minute,” she said breathlessly and he released his grip on her and watched curiously as she stepped into the attached bathroom and came back with two robes that she draped on the chair next to the bed. “Just in case we have to hastily cover to go get dressed if Trixie comes in,” she said, reaching out a hand to him and he wasted no time closing the two steps between them and picking up where he left off. 

Lucifer nibbled and sucked his way down the side of her neck as he laid her down on the bed, whispering huskily, “you have /no idea/ how long I’ve been dreaming of this.”

She was already unbuttoning his shirt as she replied panting. “I think I have a pretty good idea and I…” she was cut off by a moan ripping from her throat as he lowered himself on top of her, sliding a hand under her shirt. 

It was almost half an hour later before stars exploded behind both of their eyes and he stilled over her, as they both took a moment to catch their breaths. Once he could spare the air to do so, he leaned his head down and kissed her slow and deep and her hands tangled in his hair as she returned it. When the kiss broke he just leaned his forehead against hers, their noses brushing together as he drank in the moment. It was a few minutes before she could see that he had his emotions somewhat under control again, so she felt comfortable speaking. “Now I know what all the fuss is about Mr. Lucifer ‘best night of my life’ Morningstar,” she said with a grin. 

Lucifer let out a quiet laugh torn between responding with a joke, assurances that this wasn’t even close to his best due to trying to keep it quick, or what he finally went with. “And now I get to see what it’s like on the other side of that equation,” he whispered. When she looked like she was trying to puzzle out what he meant, he smirked and added, “Because you, darling, just gave /me/ the best night of /my/ life.” 

Chloe could feel the tears welling up in her eyes as she tilted her head forward to kiss him lovingly. “I love you, Lucifer.”

“And I love you, Chloe,” he whispered back as he nuzzled her cheek and pressed a soft kiss to her neck. “But I doubt we are going to have much longer before we are interrupted, unfortunately.” Sometimes super hearing was a good thing. He rolled off of her and grabbed a pair of shorts to sleep in and she sighed sadly, agreeing with him and went to grab her usual tank top and shorts as well. 

Once they were both presentable, Lucifer opened the door and said quietly, “You may as well come in now, urchin.” It was only a few seconds before they heard feet running up the stairs as Trixie barreled into the room. Chloe looked at Lucifer confused, wondering how he knew and he smiled and tapped his ears so she nodded as they all climbed into bed and his wings wrapped around them both in what was becoming a nightly cocoon. 

*A little while earlier*

Maze smirked as Lucifer and Chloe rushed upstairs. It was about time. She didn’t pause in sharpening her knives though until about ten minutes later when Trixie stumbled out of her room heading for the stairs. “Hey kiddo, what’s up?” she asked, despite knowing the answer. 

“Where’s Lucifer?” she mumbled worriedly. 

“He’s upstairs with your mom. Why don’t we give them a little while. Come sit with me. I haven’t seen you much since you got back,” Maze told her, holding out an arm. If Trixie got really bad she would have to go interrupt them, but as long as she could keep the kid at least mostly calm, he’d give them their time. Her hearing was nearly as good as her sense of smell and both would tell her when they were done. Trixie hesitated for a long moment before her eyes widened as though it dawned on her why they needed time and she nodded and went to cuddle next to Maze. “So, how do you feel about moving in with Lucifer tomorrow?” she asked, trying to occupy her mind somewhat, and maybe talking about him would have the same effect as being near him. At least for a little while. 

It seemed that Maze was onto something because a huge grin broke out on Trixie’s face as she said, “Great! It’s gonna be sooo much fun. He already started teaching me how to play the piano and he said we can design my new room however I want…” she babbled for a good ten minutes and when she finally stopped, Maze asked another question and set her off again. Three more babbling answers later and she heard Lucifer’s voice so she told Trixie to go on and she ran for the stairs. 

*Back in Chloe’s room*

Once they are all settled into bed, unfortunately Trixie was now wide awake, after her conversation with Maze. And, of course, as with all children, had no filter. “You guys were having sex weren’t you,” she accused smugly. 

“Yes,” Lucifer admitted without shame before Chloe collected herself enough to respond. 

“Lucifer!” she scolded. “You can’t tell her that!” 

“Why not? She already knew anyway, and you know I don’t lie. It’s not like I’m planning to give her details,” he pointed out. 

“But…I…” she stammered for a moment before she deflated. She couldn’t argue with that, but she did give Lucifer a playful smack to his chest when he looked at her smugly and Trixie just giggled. 

It took about twenty minutes to get Trixie calmed down to sleep again, and Chloe whispered to Lucifer. “You knew she was up?” 

He nodded. “I heard her get up and I heard Maze intercept her. If she had gotten too panicked I would have stopped, but Maze kept her distracted well enough.”

Chloe was struck speechless for a moment with too many thoughts rushing through her head. The fact that he could hear that well, that he would have stopped, after going so long without, and wanting it so badly, if Trixie had needed him, the fact that Maze could apparently hear that well too and thus knew exactly what they were doing, but mostly the fact that he would have stopped…It made her fall in love with him even more and she hadn’t thought that was possible. Finally she managed to find words. “I’ll have to thank Maze in the morning then.” 

He grinned and stretched his neck to kiss her softly. “You and me both. I might even give her a nice bonus on her next payday.”

Chloe chuckled softly, trying to stay quiet enough not to wake Trixie, and it worked…barely. Trixie twitched in her sleep and Lucifer winced slightly, but it was gone as fast as it came. “Are you okay?” 

He nodded. “I’m fine. She just has a bit of a habit of tugging on my feathers in her sleep. It doesn’t actually hurt unless she gets too close to one of the wounds, and even then it’s just a quick prick of pain,” he told her honestly not wanting her to worry. 

Chloe just shook her head at how surreal her life was getting where that statement seemed normal before she turned and kissed his chest. “They do look better than they did,” she said actually paying attention to the wings and remembering how blood-soaked and broken they had looked a few days ago. 

“They’re healing. In a few days they’ll be as good as new,” he told her. 

“Good,” she said gratefully. She was glad that he wouldn’t be in pain for much longer. They whispered conversation for a little while longer before they finally drifted off to sleep.


	18. Chapter 18

The next morning Chloe, once again, had to wake Lucifer up to get his wing to let her go and she gave him a kiss as she got up to get ready for work. When she found Maze working out in the living room, she went over and interrupted her to give her a big hug and said, “Thank you.”

“For what?” Maze asked. 

“Last night,” she said. “Lucifer told me you stopped Trixie from coming up too soon.”

Maze smirked. “Have fun?” 

“Very,” she laughed with a blush. “Want some breakfast?” 

Maze nodded and headed to sit at the table while Chloe made toast and scrambled eggs. “I was surprised I didn’t have to keep her occupied much longer,” she said with a smirk. 

“What do you mean?” Chloe asked. 

“A few hours is more the norm for him if you know what I mean,” she laughed and winked at Chloe, who blushed even brighter. 

“He must still be recovering from everything that happened,” Chloe told her, trying to play it off. 

Maze misunderstood why she was making excuses, and rushed to try and cover up her unintentional blunder. “I didn’t mean that you weren’t any good or that he wasn’t into it. I just meant that you’re special and there weren’t any games…” 

Chloe chuckled a bit. “Stop. Maze. It’s okay. I get it. I wasn't hurt, really.” She was just the opposite in fact. She knew why he kept it apparently quicker than usual, though she stood by the fact that it was the best night of her life and she suddenly couldn’t wait to see what it would be like when they had more free time. 

After a quick breakfast and some more conversation, which Chloe spent most of blushing, she headed out to work. 

It was only about another hour before Lucifer and Trixie came down and Maze got a second breakfast, much bigger than the first and Lucifer gave Maze the best piece of ham with a wink and a nod in lieu of thanks. He still intended to give her a big bonus too though. “So what are you two doing today?” Maze asked. 

“Well I have yet to consult the urchin, but unless she has any objections, I was planning to spent the rest of the morning moving the stuff over to the penthouse, then stop by the precinct with lunch before going to meet the doctor,” Lucifer told her. 

“Oh. That sounds like a pretty full day,” Maze said trying to hide how left out she felt. 

“I would invite you along, but the penthouse is a bit of a mess right now. There’s barely anywhere to sit, and the urchin can’t hang out downstairs. I do plan on throwing a party on Friday once everything is finished though.” 

“Not like your usual parties, I hope,” Maze warned cutting her eyes to Trixie.

“Sadly, no. There will be plenty of alcohol, but no drugs, strippers, or orgies this time,” Lucifer told her. “Though I’m sure you’ll still enjoy it.” 

“I’m sure,” Maze drawled. It seemed the devil really had been tamed, and the sad thing was, she wasn’t sure if it really bothered her, and that definitely bothered her. If anyone had told her six years ago what her life would be like, she probably would have killed them for lying to her, but now…it was nice. 

Once breakfast was finished, Maze helped load up the car. When they realized that it was going to take more than one trip, she decided to go along anyway and help unload before coming back for the rest. By the time they finished it was almost lunchtime and Lucifer stopped at an upscale delicatessen along the way to get takeout, making sure that the detective’s sub was just the way she liked it, and he and Trixie headed to the station. 

He was hoping that she would be there and not out at a crime scene or something and his hopes were founded when he saw her sitting at her desk. He waved to a few people on the way in, but she didn’t notice him until he dropped the food bag on top of the case file she was working on and her head snapped up before breaking out in a grin. Lucifer just smirked and leaned down for a kiss, pulling her to her feet and kissing the daylights out of her. 

Chloe rolled her eyes and went along with it, kissing him back, and trying to ignore all the catcalls the spectacle was inviting. It was just like Lucifer to always want to be the center of attention. When he finally broke the kiss, she just laughed and shook her head. Trixie then took her turn to greet her mother and hugged her happily. “So what brings my two favorite people by?” she asked. 

“Well we were hoping to have lunch with you if you can tear yourself away for a little while,” Lucifer smirked. 

“Well I haven’t taken my break yet, so I suppose I can. Unless we get a break in this case of course. Then I’ll have to run.”

“Of course,” he told her, well aware of how that went. Before he could say anything else though he noticed movement from beside him and barely managed to turn before Ella was hugging the life out of him. “Hello Ms. Lopez,” he said amusedly as he slowly returned the hug. 

“Lucifer! I’m just happy to see you. I’ll let you guys go eat. I just wanted to come say hi,” she said, hugging Trixie too before bouncing back to her lab. 

“I will never understand that girl,” Lucifer shook his head with a chuckle. 

Chloe laughed. “Come on. It’s a nice day so we can eat at the park across the street.” 

After a nice lunch that they managed to enjoy all of during Chloe’s lunch hour, she headed back to the precinct while Lucifer and Trixie made their way to Doctor Linda’s office. Lucifer knew they would have a lot of work to do at the penthouse this evening and didn’t want to add more by cooking so he texted Chloe to meet them at El Cazador for dinner. They had spent a little extra time with Dr. Linda since they were her last appointment of the day, so they arrived only about ten minutes before Chloe did. 

After dinner they headed home just as the contractors were finishing cleaning up. Lucifer gave the foreman a large tip to pass on in addition to the extra that he paid for the rush job, got his key back and saw them out. “Well. I suppose it’s time to get this place back in order,” he said clapping his hands together. 

“We can handle this. Why don’t you go jump in the shower, Monkey,” Chloe told her, knowing that she’d fallen asleep without one the last two nights and she doubted that Lucifer even thought to have her take one in the morning. 

“Can I take a bath instead? That tub is sooo big,” Trixie asked bouncing on her feet. 

Chloe looked at Lucifer who shrugged, so she gave permission. “Just make sure you wash before you play please.” 

“Okay!” she said happily running for the bathroom.

Lucifer headed behind the bar where he had his office furniture stashed, and suggested, “Why don’t you work on getting the furniture back into position while I move this stuff.” 

She nodded as he picked up his desk and headed back for the office area, which was now a few feet smaller due to the added door. He was just putting in place when Chloe told him, “I’m gonna need some help with most of this.” 

He looked over to see her flushed, and he chuckled. “Come now detective. Your spawn is the one who moved them over there. Don’t tell me she’s stronger than you are.” 

Chloe gaped at him for a moment, during which he began to consider that perhaps she wasn’t joking. “Trixie moved all this?” He nodded. “By herself?” He nodded again. “And it wasn’t on wheels or anything?” He shook his head. “That shouldn’t have been possible,” she said more than a little worried now. 

Lucifer tilted his head in thought. “I can agree that it’s odd, but I don’t see any reason to worry. Perhaps it’s simply some side effect from spending so long in hell. It could wear off, but even if it doesn’t, I don’t see anything wrong with being a little stronger than most.”

Chloe sighed and relaxed. He was right. She didn’t like not understanding it, but until there was something a little more concerning, there wasn’t much she could do but watch and be ready to act if needed. “You have a point. We’ll just keep an eye on it and make sure there aren’t any other changes.” 

Lucifer nodded and mentally patted himself on the back for avoiding the crisis. “Let me just get my cabinet put back and then, if you like, you can start organizing the boxes and getting your stuff put up.” He hadn’t told her about the extra closet, intending it to be a surprise. 

“I’m not sure if there’s room,” she told him. 

“Then make room, darling,” she told her as though it should be obvious. 

“I don’t want to mess up any of your stuff if you have it organized,” she told him. 

Lucifer rolled his eyes. “You just put your stuff where you want it and I’ll reorganize around it. There’s no need to make things difficult, dearest.”

Chloe smiled as Lucifer turned his attention back to the furniture, warmed at his easy acceptance of her making this space her own as well. It didn’t take her long to sort out which boxes were hers and which were Trixie’s before taking hers to Lucifer’s room…their room…she corrected her thinking. She set them at the foot of the bed and turned around, smiling wider at the sight of the new closet and chuckling at the idea that he had too many clothes to share one closet. 

It didn’t take her long to put away her clothes and the few odds and ends she had and by the time she headed back out to the living room for her box of books, Lucifer was putting the last of the furniture back into place. “Where should I put my books?” she asked, not having seen any shelves in his…their…room. 

“There’s plenty of room over there,” he said pointing to the nearly empty curio cabinet. If you need more, I’ll put in an order for a new bookshelf or two with the decorator tomorrow,” he told her and helped her put the books away. They ended up filling almost all of the space, and Lucifer made a mental note to get another case anyway for future books.


	19. Chapter 19

The next morning, Lucifer got up with Chloe, leaving Trixie to sleep a little longer as he made breakfast. The decorator would get there not long after Chloe left, so they only let Trixie sleep until breakfast was ready. Once Chloe was gone, Trixie went over to the piano and started practicing the melody to Heart and Soul again to kill time while Lucifer cleaned up. 

Once the decorator arrived, Lucifer directed her to Trixie. He had promised to oversee everything and make sure she didn’t go overboard, but for the most part it was Trixie’s show. The woman nodded and turned to Trixie. “First things first…what’s your favorite color?” 

“Purple,” she answered without hesitation, and the brainstorming began as they went to look at the room. It was easily the size of living area, so there was plenty of space to fill. Measurements were taken, carpets, wallpaper, furniture, and electronics were decided on from the many catalogues the decorator brought and two hours later they had a solid plan. 

“Okay, so most of what you want we have in stock and if I put a rush on it we can have it delivered and set up after lunch. We can get the carpet and wallpaper started in about an hour when the crew gets here with the materials so the room will be ready for the rest.” the decorator told Lucifer and Trixie was bouncing excitedly. 

“That sounds perfect,” he said as he pulled out a checkbook. It was good to have money. This likely would have taken a week or more without it, but throw enough money at a problem and it gets resolved in record time. He made sure to give the decorator a fat bonus just to ensure that the job was done well and quickly. She thanked him profusely and left to make arrangements after he gave her the key to get back up without having to ring the bell. 

Once she was gone, Trixie bullied Lucifer into playing with her. It took almost the entire hour before she could keep the melody going while he played the rest, and he sent her to watch television while the entire large crew worked on her room. It took a lot of people to get it done so quickly. While she was watching television and they were working, Lucifer went to his computer to look up piano teachers and made her an appointment for next Monday. He had no desire to continue teaching her and she seemed to enjoy it enough to make it worth it. 

Lucifer made a simple lunch. Well, simple for him anyway, and he made enough to feed the work crew as well and they finished up just in time to enjoy it. He knew that happy workers were productive workers and had every intention to keep them as happy as possible. They had just finished cleaning up after they ate when rest of the furnishings arrived and Lucifer left them to it as they headed out to see Dr. Linda again. 

By the time they got home, the work crew was almost done and the decorator overseeing the process asked them to check the work, so Trixie bounded into the room at full speed, while Lucifer followed at a more sedate pace. Trixie was gushing about how awesome it was and even bounced on the bed a little bit before running around the room touching everything as if to make sure it was real. Lucifer turned up his nose at the colors, but if the child was happy, that was the important thing. He refrained from giving his opinion, for just that reason, but smiled at the woman, and gestured to the bouncing and gushing child. “I do believe that is a ringing endorsement.” 

He gave another large tip as everyone filed out, and he started on dinner since it was almost time for Chloe to get home and he sent Trixie to her room to start putting her stuff away. She just wanted to spend time in there anyway so she didn’t complain at all. It wasn’t until Chloe was coming out of the elevator that he realized that he hadn’t seen the urchin for nearly an hour and he smiled at that. It seemed that Dr. Linda was helping after all. 

She seemed to have been summoned by the ding of the elevator, though because she bounded out of her room and grabbed Chloe’s hand. “Mom! You have to see my room. It’s so amazing. Lucifer is the best!”

Chloe reached out and grabbed Lucifer’s hand as she was pulled, pulling him along with. She had a feeling that there were going to be explanations necessary, as there usually were when leaving Lucifer in charge of anything. Chloe’s jaw dropped as she stepped into the room and looked around dumbfounded. It was almost five minutes before she managed to form words. “Did you say no to anything?” she asked incredulously. 

“Of course I did. I remembered what you said about moderation so when she wanted the 70 inch television, I pointed out the size of the room and the fact that she wouldn’t even be able to see the entire screen, so we went with the 50 inch instead. Plus, she wanted a double bass and subwoofer surround sound home theatre system so I pointed out that even soundproofing only goes so far so we went with the regular one. Oh and she wanted solid gold fixtures in the bathroom, but I told her that was wasteful, so they’re only gold plated,” he said with a smirk, rather proud of himself for his win. 

Chloe opened her mouth and closed it a few times before she croaked out, “Thank you?” and decided that the best thing to do was just to check out of the conversation. 

“Isn’t it awesome, mom!?” Trixie asked again, waiting for the judgement. 

Chloe just nodded. “It is, Monkey. I’m glad you’re happy,” she said with a forced smile. “Now what do you say we have some dinner. It smells good.”

Over dinner, Trixie regaled Chloe with the whole story of the selection of everything in the room and how she set it up, including how much trouble she had putting her new sheets on the queen sized bed when the bed curtains kept getting in the way. Once dinner was over, she asked if she could go listen to music in her room, and was quickly granted permission. 

Over the course of the dinner, Chloe had decided not to get upset with Lucifer. It wasn’t his fault he didn’t understand, and he had obviously tried. She did want to see if he had anything more to say on the subject though, so she brought it up. “That is an amazing room.” 

Lucifer shrugged. “It’s a little too…colorful…for my taste, but that’s what she wanted. The doctor said that allowing her to design her own space where she can feel safe would be helpful, and it seems to have worked. Until you got home, I hadn’t seen her since it was finished.”

Chloe nodded, and redoubled her decision not to take anything out on him. He was trying so hard. He just didn’t understand moderation, and that did sound like something Linda would say, so she would just remind her that she needs to be a little more specific with Lucifer. She decided to remember the same thing herself as well. She should have set clearer boundaries. What mattered was that he had done something great for her daughter and was doing his best to see her taken care of. She kissed him for that and he pulled her against him. She said a much more sincere this time. “Thank you, Lucifer. For everything you’ve done and are doing for her. Maybe just scale things back a little next time?” she suggested with a chuckle.


	20. Chapter 20

That night, Trixie tried to sleep in her bed, and succeeded for most of the night. It was after midnight before she stumbled into Lucifer and Chloe’s room and laid down on Lucifer’s free side on top of the wing that was laying flat on the bed and she smiled and snuggled closer when it closed around her without waking anyone up. 

Chloe smiled sadly when she woke up and noticed that Trixie had found her way in over the course of the night. It had been after she’d fallen asleep though which was definite progress. Hopefully, before long, she would be able to spend an entire night in her room. She woke Lucifer, as was becoming habit, long enough to get his wing to release her, but he decided to get up with her anyway and make breakfast. This time they let Trixie sleep though, and made pleasant conversation over breakfast. 

Trixie woke up about an hour after her mother left and Lucifer heated up the plate he’d set aside for her. “Thanks, Lucifer,” she said happily. 

“So what would you like to do today, urchin?” he asked. 

“Can we go hang out with auntie Maze?” she asked hopefully. 

“I’ll just call her and make sure she’s not busy,” Lucifer offered, pulling out his phone. Maze quickly agreed when she heard Trixie begging her to come over and see her new room, and got there about an hour later. While they waited, they practiced the song on the piano. Trixie wanted to show her mom when she got home today. 

After the tour of her new room, Lucifer was surprised when Maze asked Trixie if she wanted to train. “Train?” Lucifer asked curiously, looking between them. 

“Yeah. She’s teaching me to fight and use blades,” Trixie told him. 

“And your mother knows you’re doing this?” he asked skeptically and both of them nodded, so he shrugged. “Then feel free if you wish to.”

Maze started moving the furniture out of the way so they would have enough open space in the middle of the floor, and Lucifer started to go outside, not particularly wanting to watch the urchin fight, but as he walked by, she grabbed his arm and gave him a desperate look and he knew what she wanted. “You know you don’t have to train right now, right? Mazikeen will understand.”

“I know, but I want to. I /need/ to,” she told him and Lucifer understood. She needed to not feel helpless. It wouldn’t make it any easier for him to watch, but if she needed him here, then he would be. He went over to the displaced couch and sat down with a book and a glass of whiskey, trying to keep his mind off of what was happening in front of him, but unfortunately, especially unfortunate for Maze, it didn’t work. 

The first time Maze got Trixie pinned with a blade to her throat, Lucifer reacted instinctively and jumped up, throwing Maze against the wall and pinning her with his wing which had gone razor sharp and his eyes flashed red. Maze struggled and snapped. “Lucifer!” 

It wasn’t until he felt Trixie’s hand on his arm as she said, “It’s okay Lucifer. She won’t hurt me. She’s just teaching me, remember?” that he came back to himself and pulled his wing back and put them away. 

“Apologies, Maze,” he said with a nod as he went over to the piano and started to play as Maze nervously continued the lesson. Lucifer twitched often over the next couple hours, but refrained from getting involved again and Maze relaxed over time. 

Maze would never admit how scared she’d been when Lucifer had her pinned. They had fought more times than she could count, but never had he brought his wings into the fight. It would have been an unfair advantage that he didn’t want. Well not unless it really counted. She remembered her thought from the other morning about how the devil had been tamed and realized that she had been very wrong about that. He had changed, yes. His priorities and his lifestyle, but he was probably more dangerous now than he’d ever been. He had something to fight for now and no force in the cosmos could protect anyone who tried to take it from him. As she left after lunch, she massaged her throat and shuddered at how close she had come to death, but she couldn’t even blame Lucifer. After fighting so hard and so long to protect her, it had just been instinct. 

After Maze left, Lucifer and Trixie headed to see Dr. Linda. The doctor had been proud of Trixie for sleeping half the night in her own room, gave Lucifer an exasperated look at the description of the room, and then she brought up the morning they had. Lucifer was decidedly uncomfortable with the conversation once the urchin brought up his reaction, and was slightly irritated at how long they spent talking about that when they were supposed to be here for the child. He refused to admit how much it helped when she explained that it had just been a flashback and it was normal and then praised him for keeping control after that. She’d also praised Trixie for getting back into the swing of things and told them both that training in self-defense was often suggested for victims of violent crimes so as long as she felt like she was okay to handle it, she should continue. 

After they left the office, Linda immediately picked up the phone to call Maze with suggestions about how to best teach Trixie without triggering either of them. She was walking the line of confidentiality, but was very careful not to cross it. She wanted to call Chloe as well, to let her know what happened, but she knew that would definitely cross the line. Besides, it wasn’t likely to be necessary. Trixie seemed like she was almost proud of the fact that Lucifer had come to her defense so quickly and effectively and would probably not hesitate to tell her mother. She just hoped this wouldn’t be a setback in the attachment process. 

That last thought could have been prophetic because as soon as they got home, Trixie curled up in Lucifer’s lap and asked if they could watch a movie. Lucifer agreed only if he could pick the movie and she didn’t argue. He realized that she needed him right now, so texted Chloe and asked her to pick up dinner on her way home and when she agreed he called and placed the order and paid for it.

When she got home, she could see that something had happened, and immediately started to worry. When Trixie told her about their day, with a little less exuberance than normal, she noticed Lucifer’s wince as she got to the part where he lost it, and she knew that he was feeling guilty again, so she had every intention of nipping that in the bud. She suspected that at least some of Trixie’s mood was rubbing off from him anyway, so hopefully it would help them both. “Lucifer,” she said softly reaching out a hand to his shoulder and waited until he looked at her before she said, “Thank you.” 

“I almost killed Maze, Chloe,” he said with a shaky voice. 

“I know, but you didn’t. You reacted instinctively to protect Trixie from what you thought was a threat, and given what happened you reacted appropriately by just containing the threat until you could assess it,” she told him, knowing that using more professional terms would help put him more at ease. “I realize that she wasn’t actually a threat, but knowing that you will react so quickly and effectively when she’s in danger makes me happy. It makes us all feel safer, so thank you.”

“I need to…” he shifted in his seat and Trixie slid off, and let him go, so he walked out to the balcony. 

“Thanks, Mom,” Trixie said with a smile and when Chloe looked at her curiously, she said, “I could tell he was upset but I didn’t know what to do. He didn’t seem to want to play, and I didn’t know what to say to help him so I just tried to keep him calm until you got home and I thought that if he thought he was helping me it would help him.”

Chloe felt the tears welling up in her eyes again as she hugged Trixie tightly. “You are a wonderful kid, and don’t ever let anyone tell you otherwise.” 

Trixie beamed at the compliment before she said, “Now go finish pulling him out of his funk so we can eat. I’m hungry.” 

Chloe laughed and let her daughter go so she could go outside and talk to Lucifer. She stepped up beside him and put a hand on his back. She wasn’t sure what he was thinking right now, so she just stood there waiting for him to speak. There was silence for long moment before he finally spoke in a broken voice. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been afraid of myself. Afraid of what I’d do if I lost control for even a single moment…”

She sighed sadly, wrapped her arm around his waist and leaned her head on his shoulder. “I can understand that, but you don’t need to be afraid. It sounds to me like you /did/ lose control today. You lost control and everything was okay.” He gave a noise of disagreement, so she tried a different way. “I’m not afraid of you, Lucifer. Trixie isn’t afraid of you. I’m sure Maze was a little nervous for a while, but she’s not afraid of you either. You did what any one of us would have done in your position if we thought someone we cared about was in danger.” 

“But she /wasn’t/ in danger. She was just training. Maze wouldn’t have hurt her and I know that,” Lucifer protested. 

“But when it happened, you didn’t see Maze did you?” she asked despite knowing the answer. “You saw one of those demons down in hell that you had to protect her from, didn’t you?” He nodded slowly, swallowing around the lump in his throat. “I’ve watched her train with Maze before. Once. I couldn’t take it. I’m not at all surprised by your reaction, because I nearly had the same one, and if I had been through what you had been through recently, I don’t doubt for a second that I would have shot to kill and not hesitated. Does that make me a monster too?” 

His head snapped around to look at her. “No! Never,” he protested. “You could never be a monster, Chloe. 

“And neither could you. Not anymore,” she told him. 

He sighed. “When she said they were going to train, I knew it would be hard for me to watch, but Beatrice looked on the verge of panic when I tried to leave.” 

Chloe forced herself not to react at him calling Trixie by her name. That alone told her that he was incredibly off kilter emotionally. “I’ll talk to Trixie and let her know that the same rules apply to you watching them train as for me. Meaning not when I’m in the room. She doesn’t need to be training anymore until she can feel safe enough to do so without you there. Does that help?” 

Lucifer took a deep breath and let out a relieved sigh. “It does. Thank you,” he said. It made him feel so much better to know that he wasn’t the only one who struggled with it. 

“Good. Now let’s go eat and then you should play for a while,” she told him.

He smiled and kissed her softly. “I am beyond blessed to have you in my life, Chloe,” he said softly. 

“So am I, Lucifer,” she returned before they headed inside.


	21. Chapter 21

After dinner, Lucifer went to the piano and Chloe suggested to Trixie that they hang out in her room. Once they were in there, they could barely hear the piano, even with the door cracked open. “I wonder if this room is soundproof,” Chloe said aloud. 

“It is,” Trixie told her. “But Lucifer said that he heard better than other people so even though it’s soundproof, if I scream he’ll still hear me. I think I’m still gonna sleep with the door open though, just in case.” 

Chloe smiled and nodded. That made her feel a lot better. “Anyway, to what I want to talk to you about…”

“I know. I shouldn’t have asked Lucifer to stay while I was training and I won’t do it again,” she promised.

“Thank you, Monkey,” she said with a smile. “I also wanted to make sure you knew what happened there.”

She nodded. “Aunt Linda explained about flashbacks and how they can happen after traumatic events. When she did, I wondered why I didn’t have any flashbacks when we were training, but I’ve been thinking about it ever since and I think I have it figured out now.”

“Oh?” Chloe asked curiously. 

“Yeah. It was really bad at the beginning when I was hurt, yeah, but that was a long time ago and after that I was never in any real danger because I had Lucifer to protect me. He was in danger though, the whole time and he got so used to protecting me that it’s hard for him to stop.” 

Chloe smiled proudly. “That about sums it up, I think. I am /so/ proud of you, Trix. You know that right?” 

Trixie blushed and smiled. “I know, Mom.” 

She felt like Trixie had earned the right to know something and that it might help both her favorite people to talk about it, so she gave Trixie a conspiratorial smile and motioned her over closer to the opening in the cracked open door. She knew that Lucifer would notice if it suddenly opened all the way, but this way it could just seem like they were moving around the room as they talked. Trixie looked curiously at her mother but followed along. “You should know, there’s something else you did that helped him a whole lot while you were down there.”

“What?” she asked confused. 

“Do you remember when he saved you from the demons? What he looked like?” 

“Yeah. He looked like the drawings of the devil from Sunday School. Why?” 

“He said you didn’t seem afraid of him at all while he was looking like that…”

“Of course I wasn’t,” she said as though it should be obvious. “He’s still Lucifer. He’d never hurt me, no matter what he looks like. The demons sure were scared though,” she giggled. 

Chloe laughed and moved back over to sit on the bed, and Trixie went with her. She had heard him falter in his playing at Trixie’s response and knew that he heard it, and that was all she wanted. She knew that he didn’t want to talk about and they could all tell him until they were blue in the face that they weren’t scared of him, even like that, but maybe hearing it this way, he might start to believe it. At least a little bit. “He really thought I would be scared of him?” she asked confused. 

Chloe knew that he could probably still hear the conversation, but she wasn’t sure. Still there was only one right answer here, even if it did mean confessing her most shameful secret to her daughter. She looked down at the bed sadly. “I was,” she said guiltily. “I hadn’t believed that he was really the devil and then I saw his face and eyes and I got scared and ran away.” 

“How could you ever be scared of Lucifer?” she asked, horrified. 

“I’m not proud of it. I know now how wrong I was and how much I hurt him and I’ll never forgive myself for it, even though he’s forgiven me. Even grown-ups make mistakes, Monkey.”

Trixie crossed her arms. “Well if he forgave you then I will too, but don’t do it again,” she said firmly. 

“I promise I won’t. Ever,” she said seriously. 

“Good,” Trixie told her. “Then I’m glad I saw him like that. Maybe now he knows that it’s okay. It’s part of who he is and you always said that we shouldn’t be afraid to be ourselves.” 

“You’re absolutely right. I’m glad you saw him like that too.”

“I’ve seen auntie Maze’s other face too,” she said. 

“I didn’t even realize she had one. When did she show you?” 

“A few years ago when she took me trick-or- treating. She tried to make it seem like makeup or something, but I’m not as dumb as she thought. I told her she needed a costume too and she told me to turn around and that she had something and when I turned back half of her face looked rotted. It was cool. She seemed surprised and happy when I told her that.”

Chloe reached out to pull Trixie into a hug. “You are a true treasure, Monkey, and we are all lucky to have you in our lives.”

Trixie beamed, once again, at the praise. “Oh, before I forget Lucifer and I want to show you something,” she said cheerfully. “Come on.”

Chloe followed curiously and watched as Trixie sat next to Lucifer at the piano and waited for him to finish the bridge he was playing and when he nodded, Trixie started playing Heart and Soul as Lucifer picked up the accompaniment. Chloe gasped and put a hand to her mouth as the memories washed over her. She stepped over behind Lucifer and slid her arms around his neck and leaned her cheek against the side of his head. He turned to look up at her with a smile so similar to the one he’d given her all those years ago that she almost wondered if they’d gone back in time, but this time it wasn’t her at the piano. It was her daughter and that was even better. 

They played it around a few times before they stopped and Trixie looked up at Chloe. “What did you think, Mom?” 

“That was wonderful, Monkey,” she said with tears in her eyes. “Did you know that’s the first song Lucifer and I ever played together?”

“It’s the only song we’ve ever played together, darling,” Lucifer responded, eyes twinkling in happiness.

Trixie grinned broadly and hugged Lucifer from the side. “Thank you so much for teaching me.”

“Yes…well…since you seemed to enjoy it so much, and you said you wanted to learn to play more, I set you up with piano lessons starting Monday morning.”

“Yes! Thank you, Lucifer!” she exclaimed hugging him tighter. 

He looked at Chloe, suddenly realizing that perhaps he should have asked for permission. “If that’s alright with you of course.”

“I think it’s a great idea,” she agreed. She knew why Lucifer wasn’t teaching her. He wasn’t comfortable interacting with /any/ child on that level, even Trixie, but she could see that he enjoyed playing with her, and this way they could maybe do so more often while someone else taught her what he couldn’t. “But for now, I think it’s time someone took a bath and got ready for bed,” she said looking at Trixie. 

Lucifer smirked and said, “I suppose I could if you insist,” and Trixie collapsed into giggles which had been Lucifer’s intention. 

Chloe rolled her eyes in amusement as she laughed. “Come on, Trix,” she said through her laughter. 

Once Trixie was in bed, Chloe went and curled up on the couch next to Lucifer. “Trixie wants to know if she can invite some of her friends to the party tomorrow night. She hasn’t seen them in a while.”

Lucifer grimaced. “You want me to allow /more/ little miscreants in the house?” 

“It would be good for her to have her friends around,” Chloe told him. 

He sighed. “Very well. If they must.” 

Chloe smiled and kissed him. She wasn’t at all fooled by his attitude. If he really was against it, he would have argued more. She knew he wasn’t comfortable with children, but there would be enough adults there to take the pressure off. She would never have asked him to deal with them alone. She still rewarded him appropriately for his generosity soon after though and she had a better idea what Maze had meant now when she had expected them to be hours. They both fell asleep with satisfied smiles on their faces.


	22. Chapter 22

It was around three AM when Lucifer heard Trixie scream and he was out of bed and flying to her room before he even registered that he was awake. Chloe was woken up when she was rolled almost off the bed by the wing suddenly being pulled out from under her. It only took her a second to realize what would have made Lucifer take off like that, and she too ran full speed towards Trixie’s room. 

Chloe would have laughed at the sight had it been less tragic, as she saw Lucifer standing perplexed looking down at her as she writhed and whimpered in her sleep. She stepped past him, placing a comforting hand on his back as she walked by and sat on the edge of the bed, reaching out to shake Trixie’s shoulder. “Wake up, Monkey,” she called softly but firmly and Trixie’s eyes snapped open before she started to shake, and Chloe pulled her into a hug. 

Trixie hugged her back but still reached out for Lucifer who was snapped out of his daze and took her hand, expecting her to pull him in, but she just squeezed his hand and gave him a shaky smile, and Lucifer sat on the bed next to them, waiting. Once she had pulled herself together and let go of them, he got up and said, “Come, urchin,” and Trixie giggled as they both followed Lucifer back to his and Chloe’s bed and it didn’t take long before Trixie was asleep again, wrapped in Lucifer’s wings. 

Once she was out, Chloe couldn’t help but ask, “What happened?” She wondered what exactly had woken her and perplexed him so much. He had seen her have nightmares before and just started humming. 

“She screamed,” Lucifer told her, and Chloe just nodded. That made sense then. He hadn’t quite been awake enough to switch his brain from looking for threats to nightmare so quickly. It didn’t take long before they both joined Trixie in sleep. 

Once they woke up later, and Chloe was off to work, Lucifer began getting things ready for the party that night, knowing that he would be banished from the living area for two hours when Maze got here and then they had the appointment with Dr. Linda this afternoon, so there wouldn’t be a lot of time. Once Maze arrived, Lucifer started to go downstairs, but at the worried look on Trixie’s face, turned and went out to the balcony instead. He made sure to keep his back to the glass doors as he sipped his whiskey and smoked while looking out over the city. He did quite enjoy this position. It always helped him settle himself, and he definitely needed that right now as he tried to keep his mind off what was going on in the next room. 

He wasn’t really aware of the passing of the time until Maze came up next to him, leaning on the rail. “The munchkin said you feel guilty about what happened yesterday,” Maze said bluntly and Lucifer gave an almost imperceptible nod. “Don’t. Because if you do, then next time when there’s a real danger, you might hesitate. And then /I’ll/ kill /you/.” 

Lucifer barked out a harsh laugh. That was so Maze and surprisingly enough, it actually helped. He pulled back from the railing, drained the rest of his glass, tossed his cigarette, and turned back towards the penthouse. “You’re done?” he asked and she nodded. 

“I’ll go start lunch then. You’re welcome to stay, of course.” After a quick and simple lunch, Lucifer finished most of the preparations for the party, including getting all the finger foods made and put in the fridge for now and that was something that Trixie could help him with. By the time he finished that, it was time to leave for the appointment with Dr. Linda. She seemed pleased with their progress, and told Lucifer that he should start weaning her off his presence a little more. Leaving, but for short periods and staying close by and making sure that she always knew where he was. Lucifer was rather glad of that. It meant that he could go downstairs and party sometimes as long as he came back up every so often. It also meant that he could hopefully get back to work sooner rather than later. 

Once the appointment was over and they got back to the penthouse, there was only about half an hour before guests would be arriving, so Lucifer asked Trixie to get the food out and put on the bar while he ran downstairs to get some more alcohol. He’d gone through quite a bit since he’d been back and hadn’t been able to replenish the stocks. 

Trixie nodded and let him go. She knew she would be okay for a little while as long as she wasn’t training. She couldn’t let him go too far when she was training with Maze. Not yet. But the rest of the time she could manage. She hoped. 

Chloe had spent a lot of her day distracted, fielding calls from worried parents of Trixie’s friends. Apparently Lucifer’s parties were rather legendary even in her circles, but she assured them that it would be entirely kid appropriate and that she would be there along with Dan, so there would be two cops present to keep things in line, so they all ended up giving permission. As soon as she got off, Dan and Ella followed her to Lux and they all headed upstairs. When she saw Maze wasn’t there and Trixie told her that Lucifer was downstairs she headed down to look for one or both of them. 

Chloe had pretty good Lucifer radar developed over the years and she immediately spotted him as a beautiful scantily dressed woman draped herself over him and she made her way over, but didn’t make herself known just yet. She told herself that it wasn’t that she didn’t trust Lucifer. She just wanted to be sure that her trust wasn’t misplaced. 

Lucifer looked the woman up and down as he drawled. “Well…aren’t you lovely. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t tempted, and I don’t lie. If I took you up on your offer we could have one wonderful night, but it would only be one night and I’m afraid that the cost would be far too high for me, so I will have to decline.” 

Chloe had felt her heart breaking at the start of his speech, but it settled down into something closer to confusion. She was happy he turned her down, but couldn’t help but wish it had been more emphatic. Still…this was Lucifer and a leopard couldn’t change his spots. She took a deep breath and walked up behind him as the woman was still pondering the meaning behind his words and placed a hand on his back as she said, “Hey Lucifer. What are you doing down here?” She made sure to keep the words and the tone completely casual.

Lucifer turned to look at her and his face lit up with happiness. “Det-Chloe!” he said in delight. “We were running low on libations for our housewarming party, so I thought that I would pop down and replenish them. Would you like to help me?” he asked as he wrapped an arm around her waist and the other woman finally left, realizing the situation. The two of them quickly grabbed an armload each of bottles from behind the bar and headed upstairs, setting them down before Lucifer pulled her outside onto the bacony. Dan, Ella, and Trixie watched them go, noticing that something had happened, and not wanting to interrupt. 

“I assure you, detective, that wasn’t what you think,” Lucifer told her, knowing what she must have seen and thought. 

“I know. I was standing right behind you almost from the start. You said you were tempted though…” she said annoyed at her own insecurity. 

“Well of course I was. I am the devil, and temptation is my game after all. I can certainly appreciate when it’s done well, but if you heard that then you also heard that the cost would be far too high to accept,” he said honestly. 

“I’m pretty sure I know what you meant by that…” she trailed off, hoping that he would confirm for her. 

Lucifer reached a hand to her cheek, fingertips brushing through her hair, and said, “You, Chloe. If I had taken her up on her offer, I would have lost you, and quite frankly, I would have deserved to.”

Chloe smiled and nodded, leaning up for a kiss. He’d said everything right and the way he had an almost bored affectation with the other woman, but he had brightened considerably when he saw her, and worded his responses to her in such a way that it couldn’t be mistaken that they were together…it made her realize just how much he meant it and the last of her insecurities washed away. He would always be Lucifer. He would always look, always charm, always flirt, but she knew now that he was really hers in every way that mattered.


	23. Chapter 23

As they were coming in from the balcony, other people were starting to arrive. Most of the parents of Trixie’s friends had come up with them, probably out of curiosity as much as anything else, and Lucifer was in full charming mode and invited them to stay. Chloe wondered amusedly how much of that was hope that they would pay more attention to their children so he wouldn’t have to. Most of them happily agreed to stay and once the first few people had arrived, Lucifer turned on the music. He had linked his and Trixie’s sound systems so the music was heard at the same volume through the entire apartment, rather than having to be too loud in some areas and too soft in others. That was a pet peeve of his and the addition of Trixie’s area meant that his surround sound didn’t do the job completely when everything was open. 

Lucifer was far from the only adult openly imbibing, though Chloe didn’t have much, figuring that at least one person other than Lucifer needed to stay mostly sober, not that anyone not in the know would believe that Lucifer was sober with as much as he was drinking. She noticed a couple of the other parents doing the same, but most everyone was rapidly getting sloshed. Little Charlie was toddling around after Trixie most of the day and all the girls thought he was so cute so there were no objections. Chloe was mingling a bit, but mostly watching Lucifer lovingly as he charmed his way through the whole party. She saw him falter a bit with a look of confusion and consternation on his face just after he had walked by Trixie’s group of friends at one point and she wondered what he heard to garner that look, but when he quickly shook it off and continued on, she put it out of her mind for now, giving him a soft smile when he looked back towards her and met her eyes. 

What Lucifer had heard though, had been one of Trixie’s friends whispering loudly to her, “Your stepdad is sooo hot!” It wasn’t that the child thought he was hot that unsettled him. He was used to people thinking that, though for a child to do so was a little uncomfortable for him, but it was easily set out of his mind. The stepdad part though is what caught him off guard. He knew that with her and Chloe living here, he was taking more of a role in her life than he was comfortable with, at least yet, but to see him as a father figure…given his own relationship with such things…was almost enough to make him run. Almost. But then he looked at Chloe and she gave him that beautiful smile that offered complete acceptance of everything he was and that urge faded as quickly as it came. He still wasn’t comfortable with being a stepdad and didn’t think he ever would be, but if that was the price of having all this then he would take it. 

About halfway through the party, Chloe realized that everything was going well and there was no need to watch so closely anymore. It seemed that Lucifer had adjusted well to the child-appropriate theme, so she waded into the crowd and joined him, heart swelling with happiness when his face lit up at her presence and he immediately wrapped his arm around her. Over the course of the evening, Lucifer managed to invite all the people ‘in the know’ including Ms. Lopez to a smaller ‘family dinner’ tomorrow night. Ella had rewarded him with a huge hug that he wasn’t aware was a result of him referring to her as family. 

The only thing that wasn’t child-appropriate about the party was the time it ended and by the time it started breaking up around three AM, most of the preteens, and Charlie were passed out piled on the couches. “How can they possibly sleep with all this going on around them?” Lucifer asked incredulously as parents started waking up their children to go home. 

Chloe just laughed. “I don’t know, but I think it’s just a kid thing.” 

“Children are odd,” he said, confused. 

“Yes. Yes they are,” she agreed as the last of the people not staying made their way out. Dan and Ella were also passed out on couches, but they agreed to let them stay and they made their way towards their room, laying down. Chloe was exhausted, but Lucifer seemed to have something on his mind, so she forced herself to stay awake and see if he was going to bring it up. 

It was about ten minutes after they laid down before he spoke, “Am I the child’s…stepdad?” 

Chloe choked as her eyes went wide. She was pretty sure that she knew now what had made him falter earlier. She knew this would have to be handled delicately. Whether he wanted it or not, to deny him now would make him feel rejected, but she knew he wasn’t ready for that, if he ever would be, so she settled on a middle ground. “Well you have taken that role in her life, and since we’re living here with you it’s a reasonable appellation, but you wouldn’t technically be her stepdad unless we were married.” She hoped that it came across the way she meant it, that she trusted and accepted him in that role, but that he didn’t have to actually take it yet if he didn’t want to. Where the conversation went next, she definitely didn’t expect. 

“That will never happen,” he said clearly. 

Chloe’s breath caught. “What? Us getting married?” she asked, unable to completely keep the shakes out of her voice at the clear dismissal and all of her insecurities flared to life larger than ever. 

Lucifer seemed to realize what she’d taken from his words and rushed to backtrack. “Not because I don’t want to spend the rest of your life with you. It has nothing to do with the commitment involved. I’m already as committed as I can possibly be. But I want no part of ‘holy matrimony’ or calling for my father’s ‘blessings’ on our relationship. In fact, I want to keep him as far as possible from anything regarding you or the urchin. Especially after what he did to her.”

Chloe felt the ache in her chest easing as she got his point, but still needing to clarify. “Just to be clear, you’re not against marriage because of me or us, just because of him?” 

“Of course,” Lucifer said. “If you want rings, we can get rings. If you want to change your name and even your spawn’s name, we can do that. We can consider ourselves married in every way the moment you wish to, but making it completely legal involves invoking him in a way that I will never accept.” He hated that this was something that he was denying her, but this was one thing that he wouldn’t…couldn’t…budge on. His father had already been far too involved in this for his taste and he had no intention of inviting more.

She turned that over in her head for a few minutes, as she considered everything that he’d said. She completely understood his desire not to involve his father. She didn’t blame him in the slightest. After creating her just to hurt him, using her daughter as a pawn to prove Lucifer a monster, and everything that he had done to Lucifer himself, she actually had to agree with him. She knew that there were non-religious wedding ceremonies, but marriage as an institution was still very connected to his father which meant that he would still be involved. She briefly considered that he had married Candy, but filed that away as inconsequential. He hadn’t loved her and wouldn’t have been worried about his father’s involvement there. She did find it rather ironic that he would marry someone he didn’t love, but not someone that he did, but that was just Lucifer. Convention had a way of being turned on it’s head when he was involved. All that took a scant few seconds to travel through her mind before the big thing hit her. He’d said that they could be married in all but paper as soon as /she/ wanted to and that thought alone was enough to banish to the far reaches of time and space any insecurities that popped up when he’d said he would never marry her. He did want her on that level. He was ready when she was. Part of her was dying to tell him that she was ready. That she wanted to do it, but she knew that now wasn’t the time. She was exhausted and emotional and she wasn’t going to agree to take that step until she could think it all through completely. Instead she just leaned up and kissed him passionately before saying, “I completely understand,” hoping that he hadn’t gotten his hopes up for a response to his almost proposal. 

She watched him carefully at her words, but saw no sign of disappointment or pain as he smiled and pulled her closer. “Thank you,” he said softly, glad that she understood and wasn’t going to try and make him change his mind. It didn’t take long after that for them both to fall asleep.


	24. Chapter 24

No one woke up until it was nearly lunchtime and Trixie was the first to wake up. She grinned when she realized that she was in her own bed for the first time since they got back from hell. She got up and giggled softly when she saw Dan and Ella sleeping on two of the couches and looked in on her mom and Lucifer and heard two distinct snores coming from the mass of wings on the bed and she creeped the door back shut before making her way to the kitchen. She made herself a sandwich as quietly as she could and grabbed some of the leftover chips to go with it and slipped back to her room to eat. 

By the time she came out to wash her plate, Dan and Ella were both starting to stir, so she didn’t worry about using the water to wash it, but first she slipped into Chloe and Lucifer’s bathroom to grab some asprin for them. “Thanks Trix,” Dan said gratefully. “How often do you have to do that?” He felt the need to be sure that parties like that weren’t a common thing now that they were living with Lucifer. 

Trixie rolled her eyes. “This is the first time since I’ve been here. Lucifer doesn’t get drunk and Mom doesn’t drink much at all.” 

Dan nodded and smiled. He’d hoped that would be the case, but he wouldn’t be a very good father if he didn’t make sure. “Okay, baby.”

“And in case you were wondering, that’s also the first time I’ve had to make my own food. Lucifer likes to cook and he’s really good at it,” she added, wanting to make sure that her father wasn’t going to go all overprotective. She knew that he’d never liked Lucifer and never trusted him and she hadn’t seen him enough since she’d gotten back to know that had changed. 

“I know, Trix,” he assured her. He’d seen Lucifer cook often enough even before this whole incident, but he still felt the need to explain some things to his daughter. “I know that you know that I never liked Lucifer before, but that was before. I see now that I was wrong. He is a good guy and I trust him with you. Well, with your safety and happiness at least. I still don’t think he’s a very good influence and I doubt I ever will.”

Trixie giggled an hugged him. “That’s okay. Mom says the same thing.” 

Chloe had woken up when Trixie had come in to get the pills and she had been standing in the doorway since Dan began his speech and she drew attention to herself at that, sliding the door closed behind her since Lucifer was still dozing off and on. “That I do, but not even Lucifer would cross any of the hard lines. Besides, Maze isn’t exactly the best influence either,” she said with a chuckle. 

Dan looked at her and nodded. He knew what she meant by ‘hard lines’ so as long as that was the case, if it made his daughter happy he could live with that. At least she still had him and her mother to help counter the worse influences. 

Ella had been keeping quiet during the little family drama, partially to give the asprin time to kick in, but took this opportunity to make herself known. “I don’t suppose I could grab something to eat?” she asked hopefully. 

Chloe grinned and nodded. “Absolutely. Let’s just see what we have…”

“I can make everyone sandwiches,” Trixie offered, having noticed her mother take some of the asprin too. Chloe looked undecided. The idea of her daughter taking care of her during a hangover wasn’t something she was completely comfortable with. “It’s not a big deal. I made my own and it’s not like it’s the first time I’ve ever made my own food,” she pointed out so Chloe nodded. Trixie was right. She was being overprotective again. Trixie was old enough now that she didn’t need to be sheltered from things like hangovers. Especially after everything she’d already been through. 

Trixie bounced over to the kitchen and started making a bunch of sandwiches. She knew what everyone liked so it didn’t take long. She also added some chips to all the plates and started handing them out, just as Lucifer came out of the room wearing nothing but silk sleep pants. Trixie grinned and held out the last plate. “I made you some lunch, Lucifer,” she said proudly. 

Lucifer stopped and blinked for a moment, a touched look flitting across his face that he would have been annoyed to realize that everyone noticed, before he took the plate. “Thank you, urchin. Have you eaten?” 

She nodded. “Yeah I already had a sandwich and some chips, but I know you guys were up really late so I didn’t want to wake anybody up.”

Lunch was eaten in relative silence, three of the group still nursing hangovers and the other two considerate enough to keep the volume down. By the time everyone finished eating, they were feeling far more human and Ella looked around slightly uncomfortably before saying, “I guess I should get going…”

“That would be pointless since you will just be back here in a few hours,” Lucifer pointed out, slightly confused. 

Chloe had a little better idea of what was needed here so she took over. “He’s right. You’re welcome to use our shower and I’d be happy to loan you some clothes.”

Ella smiled at the easy acceptance of her presence and went to take a shower while Chloe looked at Lucifer and cut her eyes to Dan. It wouldn’t really be fair to make Dan go home to shower and get ready if they were letting Ella stay. It took a moment, but Lucifer got what she wanted and sighed internally. “Yes, I would imagine that my pants would not fit you, but you would be welcome to borrow a shirt,” he told Dan, leaving out that he had no intention of giving him one of his expensive shirts. He had a few t-shirts that he had collected over the years for one reason or another and never wore.

Dan nodded gratefully. “Thanks man. My pants are fine, but a shirt would be appreciated.” He had completely refused to wear the t-shirt with the image of him screaming on the rollercoaster, but he accepted the Axara shirt and headed to use Trixie’s shower. 

While they were in the shower, Chloe texted Linda to invite her and Amenadiel over early and then sent a text to Maze as well. She knew that the day would turn into talk about the supernatural given how new Dan and Ella were to the secret, so the rest of them might as well be there. It would probably make Ella feel a little less like she was intruding on family time too and make her more comfortable. She understood why Lucifer liked having Ella around, and she did too. The younger woman was like a ray of sunshine. 

By the time that everyone was out of the shower and changed, the rest of the group had arrived and Lucifer poured drinks for everyone who wanted one as they sat down to chat. Ella was the first to speak though. “I’m sorry. Is it okay if I ask questions about all the angels and demons stuff?” she asked excitedly, and Dan looked just as interested.

Lucifer chuckled, and nodded. “Of course, Ms. Lopez. I have never minded questions.”

“Well how does the whole heaven and hell thing work? How is it really decided who goes where? Are we really judged?” 

“You actually judge yourself in a way. If your heart is heavy with guilt then you go to hell. Otherwise you go to ‘heaven’ which we actually call the Silver City.”

“And if you go to hell you get tortured by demons?” Dan asked curiously. 

Lucifer shook his head. “Not really. In some cases, yes, but it’s really dependent on the person and what they feel guilty for. Each person has their own hell where they live out the moments of their greatest guilt on a loop. Occasionally when the demons get bored they can take on roles in the scenario, but they don’t physically torture human souls unless the situation calls for it.”

“So if someone does bad things, but doesn’t feel guilty for it, they would still go to heaven?” Ella asked incredulously. 

“Again, that would depend. If they did enough bad things that were bad enough, The Silver City would throw them out and back to me, at which point I would have to evaluate them and design a hell that would punish them appropriately.”

“That doesn’t happen often, but occasionally it does,” Amenadiel chimed in. 

“Hitler’s hell is really funny,” Trixie giggled, injecting her own into the conversation, that having been one of the ones they hid in. 

Dan’s eyes widened. “You took her to Hitler’s hell?!” he asked incredulously. 

“Of course, but it’s not what you apparently think. His hell is designed to make him into a laughingstock to all the people that he hoped to rule over.”

“The best part is when he is giving this big speech and turns into a clown,” Trixie said.

Dan visibly relaxed. “Oh. Okay.”

“Did you guys ever get more information on why God sent Trixie down there?” Ella asked. Lucifer’s hand tightened around his glass at the question and he got up stiffly and headed out to the balcony without a word. “Oops. Did I just step in something?” she asked apologetically.


	25. Chapter 25

Chloe looked worriedly after Lucifer before turning to Trixie. “Why don’t you go check on Lucifer, Monkey?” She knew that Ella had every right to ask and get an answer, but she didn’t want Trixie to hear the answer.

Trixie nodded sadly and got up to head outside. Once she was gone, Chloe turned to Ella to explain, but before she could say anything Ella said, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked. You don’t have to tell me,” she said quickly. 

Chloe shook her head. “No, it’s okay. You have a right to know,” she assured her. “So apparently when Trixie prayed for God to help Lucifer and let him come back, he came to try to convince her otherwise, but she refused to give up on Lucifer and told God that he was wrong and Lucifer was good and that she trusted him, he thought he would prove to her that she was wrong.”

“My father has never liked being challenged, which was why Lucifer was in hell in the first place,” Amenadiel explained.

“He sent her down there with the intent to prove that Lucifer was a monster and would leave her to her fate,” Chloe spat. “Then, when he was proven wrong, did he apologize? No. He just sealed hell up so that only the human souls could get in and nothing could get out, proving that Lucifer never needed to be down there keeping order at all. He could have done that anytime and let Lucifer be free, but no. He had Lucifer convinced that he had to be there to keep them from taking over the earth,” Chloe snapped hatefully. 

Ella was almost in tears at that and when Chloe noticed, she felt bad for what she’d said and how she said it. “I’m sorry, Ella. I know your faith is important to you. I shouldn’t have…”

“No,” Ella cut her off. “My faith /was/ important to me. And it still is, but now I have faith in the right things, not…not /him/.” 

Chloe looked back towards the balcony worriedly and saw that Trixie was trying, but the tense set of Lucifer’s shoulders and the way he wasn’t looking at her told her that it wasn’t helping much. She hadn’t really expected it to, but she needed Trixie out of the way for this explanation. She started to get up to go out there, but Ella stopped her. “Let me?” she asked hopefully and Chloe sat back down and nodded. She wasn’t sure if it was the best idea, but she doubted that Ella would make anything worse, at least, and maybe Lucifer could learn that he could lean on other people too. 

Ella walked out and hugged Lucifer from behind. “Hello, Ms. Lopez,” he said hauntedly, not turning to look at her, but recognizing her hug. She stepped up next to him and put one hand on his arm, the other hand dangling over the balcony and waited until he looked over before she opened her hand, showing her crucifix necklace hanging from her finger. He looked from the necklace to her face in confusion. “Ms. Lopez, what…” He was cut off as she dropped it, not looking away from him and his confusion deepened. “You intend to give up your faith?” he asked skeptically. 

“No,” Ella shook her head. “I intend to put my faith in the right people…beings…from now on. I have faith in those that deserve it. I have faith in /you/.” 

He scoffed and turned back to look out over the city. “You think the devil deserves your faith?” 

“No. I think /Lucifer/ deserves my faith. The devil is just scary stories written by people who’ve never even met you,” she said clearly. 

“You don’t know what I’ve done, Ms. Lopez,” Lucifer said shakily. 

“It doesn’t matter,” she told him. “You were pushed around and treated horribly, and if you lashed out in response then that’s completely understandable. We all have dark times and do things we regret. All that matters is how we come through the other side.”

He turned to look at her in open wonder and after a few minutes, she started to squirm a bit under his gaze, but forced herself to stand firm, lest he think that she was anything less than positive about everything she said. “It seems Azrael was right about you,” he finally said, turning to look back over the city. 

“Azrael?” she asked confused. 

“I believe you know her as Ray-ray,” Lucifer chuckled. 

“Ray-ray is an angel? I thought she was a ghost,” Ella said wide-eyed. 

“No. She is the angel of death specifically. Apparently you were a ‘false alarm’ as she called it when you were in a car accident as a child and she got attached to you,” he told her. 

“But then why did she leave?” Ella asked. “I mean, I know I told her to, but…”

“We celestials are very intent on free will. When you asked her to leave, she wouldn’t have hesitated. She told me that she sent you here to me though so that, in her words, her ‘two favorite people’ could be together,” Lucifer told her. “But I have to wonder…” he trailed off. 

“Wonder what?” Ella asked, wondering if it was the same thing she was wondering now. If Ray-ray sent her here to help him. 

“You don’t know how remarkable you are, Ms. Lopez,” was Lucifer’s response. 

“Uh-uh. No more of that, /Ms. Lopez/,” she gave a bad impersonation of his voice on her name. “You have to start calling me Ella now. We’re family remember.” He had invited her to the family dinner which meant that he saw her that way, and now, knowing what she did, it was closer to true than she ever dreamed. 

He sighed, but she could see the acceptance in his eyes. “Very well. Ella.” He tossed his cigarette and stood back up straight. “We should get back inside.” She nodded but grabbed him in another hug first. 

When the got back in, Lucifer went to sit next to Chloe, draping his arm over her shoulders and she gave him a searching look, but he just smiled and kissed her temple to let her know that he was okay. Once they were all settled again, Dan was the one to ask the next question. “So we know angels and demons are real, but what about other things like vampires, werewolves, zombies, ghosts, you know?” 

Maze answered this one. “No. Those aren’t real. The stories humans have of vampires, werewolves, and zombies are all demons.”

“And ghosts aren’t real either,” Lucifer told him, glancing at Ella as he did.

“So stakes through the heart, silver bullets, beheading and stuff…that’s all stories?” Dan confirmed. 

“Yes and no,” Maze told him. “Demons can be killed. It’s just a little more difficult than with humans. The demons you’re thinking of were the ones that used to possess people back before Lucifer banned the practice and destroying the heart of the body they are using will expel the demon and send it home. Silver is the closest human metal to the metals of hell, so while it won’t kill demons it does burn and they almost always abandon the vessel because of it.”

“So demons can just possess people?” Ella asked worriedly. 

“In certain circumstances,” Lucifer jumped back in. “Only a recently dead damned soul, but there is only a few minute window where the demon can take over the body and restart it. I banned it centuries ago when they started going up more than one or two at a time and causing problems and that ban held until an issue happened where a soul knew where I was and what I was doing up here went to hell and told the demons to come get me.” He made sure to be vague not wanting to throw Chloe or Eve under the bus for their roles in the whole mess. 

“That’s what happened to Charlie back then,” Linda chimed in, glad that the child in question was currently taking a nap in Trixie’s bed. “When Lucifer refused to go back and tried to send them home, they decided to take Charlie and raise him to be their king.”

“But why…” Dan asked confused. 

“Because only a celestial can take the throne of hell,” Amenadiel told him. “And Charlie is half angel.”

“And that’s why Lucifer went back,” Ella said as she figured it all out. “He had to keep the demons from coming back to earth and trying to take Charlie again.”

“And keep them from coming back to earth at all. I had been gone long enough that they thought they were safe to defy my orders, and they could have used any of you to get to me,” he told them. 

“So you sacrificed your life and…and everything you wanted to…to save the world,” Ella said getting choked up at the thought.   
“It was hardly as selfless as you make it out to be Ms…Ella,” Lucifer drawled, but he could see that no one believed him, not even Dan, and he couldn’t think of a convincing argument, so he just let it drop.


	26. Chapter 26

The conversation continued for a couple more hours, with Dan and Ella asking a ton of questions, but managing to avoid any more minefields and even Linda and Chloe learned a lot that they didn’t know. Trixie had halfway abandoned them when Charlie woke up from his nap and played with him, but still popped in and out of the conversation. Lucifer kept an eye on the time though and eventually got up to start dinner, and Chloe followed him to help. 

Lucifer didn’t notice her following him until he turned around and almost ran into her as he pulled things out of the refrigerator, so he handed her the cucumbers, tomatoes, and feta cheese before turning back and grabbing the lettuce and everything else for the salad. He didn’t have to tell her what it was for apparently, because as soon as she saw the lettuce she started slicing things perfectly and he smiled before grabbing a large pot and putting it on the stove and then grabbing a loaf of Italian bread. 

“What are we having?” Ella asked curiously. 

“Mushroom Florentine with garlic bread and tomato cucumber feta salad,” Lucifer told her, and everyone’s mouth started watering in anticipation. It only took a little over half an hour before dinner was placed on the table. 

Once everyone sat down, Ella got a mischievous look in her eye and said, “We should say grace.” She knew that it wouldn’t be taken well without the punchline though, so she quickly continued before anyone could say anything. “Thank you Lucifer for this feast which we are about to…ack!” She got cut off by a playful shove from Chloe as they all burst into laughter. 

Lucifer’s laughter was a little strained though, but when Chloe looked at him she could see that it was a good strained. Ella couldn’t have made it more clear with a neon sign that Lucifer had replaced God in her faith, and also that she was perfectly open to playfully teasing him. It choked Lucifer up a bit and in that moment she quickly slotted into the little sister role she had been angling for since they met. 

Chloe gave Ella a grateful look, knowing what Lucifer was thinking and could guess at what that conversation was about between them on the balcony, and they all dug into the food. Everyone only hung around for an hour or so after dinner, before they started filing out. Once Trixie was in bed, Lucifer and Chloe went to bed as well, though it was a few hours before any actual sleeping was done. 

Once again, Trixie managed to make it the whole night in her own bed, and over breakfast, Chloe asked, “How did you sleep, Monkey? Any nightmares?” 

Trixie gave a half-shrug. “A few, but they weren’t too bad,” she said. 

“You know you can always come wake me up if you need to. Even if it’s just for a hug or to talk about it right?” she told her. 

“I know. But Auntie Linda said it’s good for me to deal with it myself when I can, and I could.”

“That makes sense, but there’s also nothing wrong for asking for help when you need it too,” Chloe pointed out. She wanted to make absolutely sure that Trixie knew that. She worried that her daughter would feel like she was intruding now that she and Lucifer were together. 

“I know, Mom. And I promise I will when it gets too bad,” she said with a bright smile, chasing Chloe’s worries away. 

Lucifer took the opportunity to start the next phase of the doctor’s adjustment protocol. “After breakfast, I’m going to run to the store around the corner and do some shopping. We are running low on food.” 

Chloe started to open her mouth to suggest that they all, go but stopped herself in time as she remembered the advice from Linda, and realized that Lucifer might like some time to himself for a while too after having Trixie completely attached to him for over a week…no, over five months she corrected herself. She also knew that Trixie wasn’t quite ready to go out in the world without him though so she didn’t suggest a mother daughter outing and she just nodded. “That’s a good idea,” she told him and proceeded to ask for a few other things that he may not have thought to get like snack cakes and ice cream.

He made a mental note of everything and started to clean up from breakfast, but Chloe waved him off. She could do the cleaning and wouldn’t take no for an answer, so while Lucifer went shopping, Chloe and Trixie did the dishes. Lucifer had only been gone for about ten minutes, when a loud noise came from outside and made Trixie yelp and jump, dropping the china bowl she had been drying. She froze for a good long minute before she burst into tears and started frantically trying to pick it up and put it back together. 

By the time Chloe managed to grab her and pull her away, she had cut her hand and Chloe quickly grabbed one of the dish towels to wrap around it, holding it in place and trying to calm her hysterical daughter enough that she could tend to the cut. “Hey, Trix…it’s okay baby…what’s wrong?” 

“I…I broke Lucifer’s bowl. He’s gonna be…so mad…I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to,” she babbled through the tears. 

Chloe pulled her into a hug and rocked her. “It’s okay, Monkey. Accidents happen and even Lucifer knows that. He won’t be mad, even if he does pretend to be. Just remember to look at his eyes and you’ll see that he’s not mad. It was just an accident and we can always get a new one okay.” She wasn’t sure how Lucifer would handle it really. She suspected sarcasm and outward irritation, but she knew, and she knew that Trixie knew, that his eyes would always betray him. She just had to remember that through her worry. Chloe hoped that she wouldn’t have to step in and put her foot down, but she would if she needed to. If he upset her too much over it. 

Trixie didn’t quite believe her, but wasn’t hysterical anymore, though the tears were still flowing. Chloe knew that was as good as it was going to get until Lucifer came home and told her it was okay, so she took Trixie to the bathroom to clean the cut and get a bandage on it.

When Lucifer got back about twenty minutes later, he pulled all his purchases out of the elevator and set them down and stopped worried at the sight that met him. Trixie was sitting on the couch crying as Chloe hugged her. His first thought was that she panicked about him being gone but went he went over, she wouldn’t even look at him and then he noticed the bandage on her hand. “What happened?” 

Chloe opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off by the string of words from Trixie’s mouth. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to.” 

“Didn’t meant to what?” Lucifer asked confused. 

“She broke the serving bowl. There was a loud noise outside and she jumped and dropped it,” Chloe told him as Trixie cried harder. 

“Is that all?” he asked as he sat down next to her and hesitated a moment before reaching a hand to her shoulder. He didn’t often initiate contact with the child, but he had a feeling it was necessary here. “Did you think I wouldn’t expect such things to happen with a child living here?” he asked softly. 

Trixie sniffled and turned slightly so that she could look up through her eyelashes nervously. “You…you’re not…not mad?” 

“Did you break it on purpose?” he answered her question with a question and she shook her head emphatically. “Then why would I be angry? Things can be replaced. If you’ll remember I put anything I couldn’t replace elsewhere when you moved in.” The next thing he knew he had a lapful of crying child and he patted her back awkwardly, curling up his nose as he felt her tears and snot mixing on his shoulder, but didn’t attempt to remove her. 

Chloe smiled and squeezed Lucifer’s shoulder, her look telling him how happy she was with him and he couldn’t help but return her smile despite his current indignities. She got up and went to clean up the mess now that Trixie didn’t need her at the moment. She was just sweeping the pieces into the dustpan when she heard Lucifer ask, “What happened to your hand urchin?” 

“I was trying to fix it,” Trixie mumbled. 

Lucifer’s eyes narrowed and he said firmly, “Look at me, urchin.” When she looked up and caught his eyes, he said, “A new bowl is far easier to facilitate than a new hand. Remember that.” Trixie giggled and sniffled as nodded, and finally let him go. “And you’ve soiled my clothes again, miscreant,” he said wrinkling his nose in distaste. 

Trixie giggled again, remembering to watch his eyes now that she was calmer and she could see that he wasn’t mad. “Sorry,” she said with a grin and he patted her head before going to change.


	27. Chapter 27

Chloe finished with the mess and when Lucifer didn’t come back out right away, she went after him, not noticing Trixie following her as far as the door. Trixie wanted to know if Lucifer was really mad about the bowl and knew that he wasn’t going to tell her and since he hadn’t specifically said that he wasn’t mad, she couldn’t be sure. 

Chloe saw Lucifer standing in front of the closet like he was looking for something, but looking lost, and Chloe knew that it didn’t have anything to do with what to wear. “Lucifer…”

“She was afraid of me,” he said shakily. Trixie, listening outside the door, put her hand over her mouth to keep from making a noise as tears started welling up in her eyes again. 

“No, Lucifer. She wasn’t afraid of /you/. She was afraid of disappointing you,” Chloe told him. When he looked at her with a lost and confused look, she clarified. “Never once did she think that you would hurt her. She was afraid you would be upset and that it would be her fault. She /loves/ you, Lucifer, and it would break her heart if you were ever disappointed in her.” 

Lucifer started a bit when she said that the child loved him, but had to point out, “She said she was afraid I would be mad, not disappointed.”

“She’s a child. They don’t always understand which words are best for a situation. I talked with her about it almost the whole time you were gone, and I promise you that disappointed was the better word for what she was afraid of.”

Trixie could see that Lucifer still wasn’t sure what to believe, so she decided that she needed to help. “Mommy’s right, Lucifer,” she said, boldly stepping into the room and looking at him teary-eyed. “I just…didn’t want you to think I was too much trouble and…and not…not want me anymore,” she said looking down at the carpet as a few tears leaked out. Lucifer goggled at her a moment feeling completely lost and shot Chloe a look of betrayal as she kissed his cheek and just walked out. 

Chloe wondered if she was doing the right thing by leaving them alone, but she was pretty sure she was. Even with everything that had happened, Lucifer had always kept a wall up to some degree between him and Trixie. It was time for it to come down, if she was going to accept what he had offered her the other night. It would be good for him. At least she hoped so. If this backfired, then she would know that he wasn’t ready to really /be/ her stepfather. 

Lucifer floundered for a long moment, not sure what to say or do. Even he knew that his usual method of sarcasm and verbal distance when dealing with her wouldn’t help here. He would never have imagined baring his soul to a child, despite how often he had to her mother, but he knew that nothing less would solve this issue, so he decided to just deal with it and hope it was never needed again. “Come here, Beatrice and look at me.” 

Trixie shuffled over and slowly raised her eyes to his and he met them steadily. “When I asked you and your mother to move in here, I did not intend it as a temporary thing, or as a ‘trial period’ of any kind. I fully intend for you both to live here as long as you wish, no matter how much you may break, or how much trouble you may cause, because some things are worth it. /You/ are worth it. Your mother is worth it, and no matter what happens, I am blessed to have you both in my life. Understand?” 

Trixie’s worry transformed into a bright smile as she hugged him again. Thankfully this time without the snot and only slight moisture from the few tears that had leaked from her eyes. This time he returned the hug firmly, rather than just patting her on the back, but it didn’t last long before he let go and she took the hint. “Now. There is no need to speak of this matter again, correct?” he asked hopefully, and she giggled and nodded. 

Chloe quickly moved away from the door and went to finish the last of the dishes, blinking back the tears from her own eyes as they both came out of the room. “Now come, urchin. I have something to show you.” She followed him over to the pile that he had brought in and he dug in it for a bit before coming out with a large box that he set on the counter. “Does this look familiar?” 

“It looks just like the dishes we have,” she said looking at the picture on the box. 

“Precisely,” he said, opening the box and pulling a few things out before handing her the serving bowl. “There we go. Problem solved.” She beamed and ran over to put it away with the other clean dishes. When he noticed Chloe’s questioning look, he shrugged. “I dislike missing items from the set and had every intention of purchasing a spare for replacements at the first opportunity, which I got today.” 

Her smile made him feel like he’d definitely won at something big here, and he proceeded to put everything else back in the box and put it on the top shelf of his closet before coming back and the three of them put the rest of the purchases away before Trixie suggested a game of Monopoly that lasted until mid-afternoon with a break for lunch. The rest of the day was spent talking about plans for the week, including Trixie’s piano lessons that were starting tomorrow which she gushed about for a good long time. 

Once Trixie was in bed, Chloe turned to Lucifer and brought up the decision she’d made today, but needed clarification on one point first. “You said that we could be married in all but on paper as soon as I wanted. Does that mean that you want that?” She asked. 

Lucifer felt his heart beating out of his chest as he turned to her and looked in her eyes searchingly before nodding. “Nothing would make me happier, my love.” 

She smiled brightly. “Nothing would make me happier either, Lucifer.” He captured her lips in a passionate kiss that ended up in the bedroom very soon after. 

Once they were sated and caught their breath, she brought the subject up again so they could talk details. “I completely understand why you want nothing to do with actual marriage and actually agree with you, but would you be opposed to a small gathering of the family here and saying vows to each other and stuff?” 

Lucifer considered it for a moment before nodding slowly. It was a reasonable compromise. She could have something resembling a wedding without the actual marriage part. He didn’t particularly like the part about opening up his heart in front of everyone, but as long as it was just the family, meaning Linda, Amenadiel, Ella, Maze, and unfortunately Dan, then he could deal. For her. Just this once. “Yes. We can do that. You can get your white dress and we can do music and dancing. We can do it downstairs at Lux if you like. It won’t be any problem to close to the public that evening.”

Chloe grinned. “That would be perfect. And I think I do want to change my name, but I’ll keep going by Decker at work just to make things less complicated when you come back.” 

Lucifer smiled. “That’s understandable. And the urchin?” 

“I was thinking of giving her the option since she doesn’t have her father’s name anyway,” Chloe told him. “I don’t know how Dan will feel about it, but it should be her choice and he won’t argue with that. Let me be the one to talk to her about it though, please.” She knew that her daughter wouldn’t deny Lucifer anything and there needed to be more to that talk than a simple ‘will you’. 

He nodded and moved on. “What do you think about doing it Saturday?” he asked. 

“How about next Saturday,” she suggested instead. “Give me this weekend to go shopping and find a good dress and stuff.”

“Perfect,” he said with a grin. “Would you trust me to find the rings or would you like to be included in that decision?” 

Chloe considered it for a moment before nodding. “I look forward to seeing what you find.” If there was one thing she couldn’t fault Lucifer for it was his good taste. Leaving it in his hands would probably mean that the rings would be hideously expensive, but they wouldn’t be overdone or gaudy. 

“Excellent. You leave everything else to me and just worry about finding the dress of your dreams,” he told her happily. She easily agreed and showed her appreciation once more before falling asleep wrapped in the comfort of his wings.


	28. Chapter 28

The next morning, Trixie was once again in their bed, wrapped in Lucifer’s wing, but Chloe knew that it would probably happen occasionally for quite a while. She had managed two nights in her own bed and that seemed like a miracle in itself knowing what she’d been through. She knew that Trixie’s piano lesson was at eight this morning, so she woke them up with her and they all set about getting ready for the day, leaving at roughly the same time. 

Lucifer took her into the piano studio and introduced himself and Trixie to the teacher, who took his hand almost reverently. “I’m a big fan, Mr. Morningstar. I’ve heard you play often at Lux. I’d be happy to teach your…” she suddenly trailed off, realizing that she didn’t know what relation Trixie was to him. 

Lucifer internally steadied himself before he uttered the word that he hated but was true enough. “Stepdaughter.” He almost missed the beaming smile that the child sent him at the word, but that was enough to make it a little less sour. 

“Yes. Of course. I do have to wonder why you aren’t teaching her yourself,” the teacher asked curiously. 

He shook his head. “I’m no teacher and I have very little patience for such things. She would be better in the hands of an actual teacher.”

The teacher nodded understandingly. He definitely wasn’t the first master to not be able to teach and she applauded him for realizing that and avoiding making the mistake of trying. “Well I would be happy to teach her. Is three days a week still your intent?” 

Lucifer looked at Trixie who nodded. He hadn’t actually discussed that part with her, so he waited until she agreed before he said, “Yes. It is.”

“Excellent. Let’s get started shall we?” the teacher motioned to the piano, but Lucifer asked her to wait a moment. 

“If you’ll be okay here, I need to make a quick trip to the jewelry store, but I’ll be back before you’re finished,” he told Trixie. 

Her eyes lit up at the mention of the jewelry store and she hoped it meant what she thought it did. If she were going to object, she wouldn’t have after that. She wasn’t completely sure she would be okay, but the jewelry store was just two stores down, so she had every intention of trying. “I’ll be okay, Lucifer,” she said with a smile before hugging him, and he patted her back uncomfortably, very aware of the audience of one at the moment. Thankfully she let him go quickly and ran over to the piano and he was able to make his escape. 

At the jewelry store, he looked around for a few minutes before asking to see their higher end wedding and engagement rings. He ended up getting a set that contained all three of the needed rings in white gold with a diamond cluster on the engagement ring and smaller diamonds set around the band of the wedding rings. As he was waiting for them to be resized he browsed the rest of the shop and on a whim grabbed a gold necklace of a butterfly with amethyst wings and a diamond body. He checked his watch after paying for the lot and realized that he only had about ten minutes to spare before the hour long lesson ended, so he rushed back to the studio just as they were finishing up with some simple scales. 

“Now remember to practice for at least thirty minutes a day, preferably an hour and I’ll see you again at the same time on Wednesday,” the teacher told Trixie, who nodded and bounded over to Lucifer happily. 

On the way home, she wasted no time asking, “Are you going to marry my mom?” 

Lucifer’s hands tightened on the wheel in surprise at her perceptiveness, but he nodded. “That’s the plan.” 

“Can I see the ring?” she asked. 

“I’ll show it to you when we get home,” he promised. He didn’t intend on showing her the wedding rings yet, but he could show her the engagement ring. He hoped she wouldn’t ask any more questions. Chloe had asked him to let her talk to the child and he wasn’t sure if that meant just about the name thing or the entire thing. Implying that he intended to propose he was reasonably sure was safe, but more than that, didn’t know. 

Trixie seemed to understand that he didn’t want to talk about it anymore, though she thought it was because he was nervous about asking her, so she just said, “She will say yes, you know,” and then turned the radio on. 

It didn’t take them long to get home and no sooner than they were there, Trixie was bouncing again. “Can I see now? Please?” Lucifer pulled two of the boxes out of his pockets, knowing which one was where and set the longer one on the counter before opening the square one to show her the engagement ring. “Wow!” she exclaimed in awe and reached out to touch it before pulling her hand back quickly. 

Lucifer chuckled. “It’s fine, urchin. You can touch. Just don’t take it out of the box yet.” The last thing he needed was for it to get dropped. He had no desire to spend the rest of the morning hunting a ring that had rolled off somewhere. 

She reached out again and ran her fingers over the cluster of diamond, once again saying, “Wow,” in almost a whisper this time. “She’s gonna love it,” she assured him as she took her hand away and closed the box. 

He put the ring box back in his pocket and picked up the other box off the counter. “I did get something else while I was there too,” he told her. 

“What?” she asked excitedly, and he opened the box to show the butterfly necklace. “It’s so pretty,” she said reaching out to run her fingers over it gently. 

Lucifer grinned. “I’m glad you think so, urchin,” he said. “Turn around and I’ll put it on you.”

“It’s for me?!” 

“Naturally,” he drawled, as she spun so fast he was surprised she didn’t lose her balance and she pulled her hair out of the way as he clasped it behind her neck. 

Once it was on she looked down at where it rested on her chest and ran her fingers over it again before almost tackling Lucifer in a hug. “Thank you, Lucifer. It’s awesome. You’re the best!”

“Of course, urchin. Of course. Now I think you should go practice for a little while before Maze gets here,” he told her and she nodded, squeezing one more time before letting go and running over to the piano, playing her scales. 

Lucifer went over to the couch with a book. He wasn’t usually much for reading but without being able to do either of his jobs, or party the way he used to, he was rather at a loss for things to do. After about fifteen minutes, he could hear that she was doing very well with the scales, so he called out, “Now practice them with the other hand.” He could tell that she hadn’t switched hands at all since everything was done in the same octave and she hadn’t shifted her position. 

That didn’t go nearly as well since she wasn’t as coordinated with her left hand as her right, but when he suggested starting slower before speeding up, it helped and by the time Maze got there, she was up to about half speed with her left hand. Lucifer greeted Maze before taking his book out to the balcony while the two of them trained. Maze, as was becoming habit stayed for lunch and left in time for them to go see the doctor. 

Linda praised them for the steps they’d taken, Lucifer having gone shopping twice, once even with Trixie being left with a near stranger. She suggested going down to twice a week in the sessions since they were doing so well and since Lucifer hadn’t had any of his own sessions due to the incident, they decided that one session a week would be one hour for Lucifer and one hour for Trixie with the other waiting in the waiting room and the other session would be with the two of them together. They would start tomorrow going separately on Tuesdays and then Thursdays together. She figured that the Thursday sessions wouldn’t be necessary too much longer. They both seemed to be adjusting well, but for now they were more of a check-in to make sure nothing was overlooked. 

Thankfully, Lucifer had convinced Trixie on the way there to not mention the rings or anything to anyone else, at least for today, so that stayed secret and she even put her new necklace inside her shirt so no one would ask questions. That lasted right up until her mother got home and Trixie decided she needed to make sure that she knew about the trip to the jewelry store to make sure Lucifer didn’t chicken out. As soon as Chloe came in, Trixie abandoned the piano where she had been practicing again, and ran over holding her necklace away from her skin. “Mom! Look what Lucifer got me. Isn’t it so pretty?”

Chloe grinned and looked at the necklace. “That is very pretty, Monkey.” She looked up at Lucifer and asked, “It’s not real is it?” At his look she just shook her head. “Never mind. Stupid question.”

“Is that a bad thing?” he asked curiously. 

“Not really. It just…seems very expensive and she’s a kid. I’m worried she’s going to lose it or break it or something,” Chloe told him. 

Lucifer shrugged. “So what if she does? It’s only money, dearest.” 

Chloe sighed. “I know. It’s just going to take me a little while to adjust to that attitude is all,” she told him. 

He nodded. He knew how strange humans could be about money, so he just put it out of his head as they sat down to dinner. Trixie had tried to take her dinner to her room so they could have some time alone, but her mother said no, so as soon as dinner was done, she said that she was going to watch a movie in her room and disappeared. 

“What was that about?” Chloe asked curiously. 

Lucifer chuckled. “Probably about this,” he said as he led her out to the balcony. He knew how this was supposed to work and he wanted her to have the full experience so where better to do this than where they first confessed their love. Once they were out there, he took her hands and looked at her. “I love you, Chloe, with all that I am. Will you almost marry me?” he asked pulling out the box with the engagement ring and opening it for her to see. 

Chloe’s eyes went wide as she felt tears welling up in her eyes. She definitely hadn’t expected this, but she should have. She nodded. “Yes. I will,” she said shakily and he took the ring out and put it on her finger before pulling her in for a kiss.


	29. Chapter 29

Once the moment between them broke, Chloe asked Lucifer, “So Trixie knew you were going to do this?” 

“Sort of. She mostly guessed when I told her I was going to the jewelry store while she was having her piano lesson,” he told her. “The doctor said that it was important that she always know exactly where I am for a while or I wouldn’t have told her that much. I know you wanted to talk to her yourself. All she knew was that I intended to propose.” 

“No, it’s fine. The only thing I really wanted to talk with her about alone was the name thing,” Chloe told him. “And speaking of, I should probably do that sooner rather than later.” 

“Of course,” Lucifer let her go. “Go have a heart to heart with your spawn,” he said with a smirk. 

She kissed him one more time before heading to Trixie’s room, and as she closed the door all the way behind her, she heard the piano start up. Before she could open her mouth though, Trixie jumped up and asked, “Did you say yes? I hope you said yes!” 

Chloe laughed and showed her the ring and she squealed and jumped into her mother’s arms with a crushing hug. That prompted a dozen more questions which Chloe answered before Trixie asked if she was changing her name. When she told her that she was, Trixie asked if her name was going to change too. After a bit of discussion on the matter, Trixie said that she would think about it. Her only concern really was how her dad would feel. 

The next morning, Trixie was at the piano as soon as breakfast was over and Lucifer felt a sense of pride wash over him before he furrowed his brow confused. He’d certainly felt pride before and knew what it felt like, but he’d never felt it about anyone else. When Maze showed up he asked Trixie if she would be okay if he went downstairs while they were training and she agreed, so he went straight to the piano to try and figure things out. He always thought best when he played, and this was definitely a new sensation. The employees running around getting everything set up for the day ignored him, as he turned things over in his mind, but had yet to come to any conclusions before Maze came down to get him. 

They headed to Dr. Linda after lunch and Lucifer insisted that Trixie go first, so he sat in the waiting room flipping through magazines while he waited his turn. Once he was in the office and sitting, she asked, “And how are you Lucifer?” 

“I’m marvelous,” he said cheerfully. “The detective and I are getting married. Sort of.”

“What does that mean, sort of?” She asked. 

“Well ‘holy matrimony’ is too linked to my father and I fully intend to keep him as far away from my life and relationships as possible, especially after what he did to the urchin, so it won’t be completely legal, but we are doing a little ceremony, exchanging rings, changing her name and possibly her offspring’s, the whole deal.” 

“And how do you feel about that?” Linda asked. 

“As I told you before, doctor, I fifty years down in hell to dream of this and come to terms with my feelings and I don’t intend to waste any more time.”

“Coming to terms with your feelings is one thing. Airing them for the world to see is another,” she pointed out. 

Lucifer knew that she was referring to the ceremony. “This is what she wants, and after denying her the full experience, how could I deny her this much?” 

“But what do /you/ want Lucifer?” 

Lucifer paused for a long moment, before he admitted. “I want to not stand in front of everyone and open myself to ridicule and air all of my vulnerabilities for the world to see,” he said bitterly. 

“You think that you will be ridiculed?” she asked. “By who?” 

“I…don’t know,” he said honestly. “The only people there will be the ones in the know.” 

“So me and Amenadiel, Maze, Ella, and Dan?” Lucifer nodded. 

“And who among us are you uncomfortable showing your true feelings in front of and why?” she asked, knowing that talking it out and putting names and faces to his insecurities was the key to getting past them. 

“Amenadiel was always Dad’s perfect son. The good soldier. And he may be on my side now, but he’s been on my side before and turned on me,” Lucifer said with a wince. He hadn’t even realized that he felt that way before she asked him like that. 

“I see why you feel that way, but I believe that the recent issue with your father was the last straw to harden his heart completely,” she assured him. “But you should still talk to him about this.” 

“What’s the point? To start a fight and break up the little bit of my family I’ve finally managed to get back?” he asked incredulously. 

“You think he would turn his back on you for that too?” She asked, and when Lucifer looked uncomfortable and on the verge of shutting down, she just said, “Just think about it,” and moved on. “Anyone else you’re uncomfortable opening up in front of?” 

“Maze is a demon. She’s never understood feelings and when I was first falling for the detective she kept telling me how weak it was making me. She even betrayed me to ‘save me from it’.” 

“Maze is a different person than she was then. Even you must see that. She loves Chloe. She loves Trixie. And she loves you. I can’t promise that she won’t tease you, but it won’t be from a place of ridicule. It will be from a place of joking among family,” Linda told him. When Lucifer still looked skeptical, she dropped it. This wasn’t about convincing him, really. It was about him figuring out what he was feeling so he could get past it. “Anyone else?” She knew there was at least one more. 

“Detective douche,” Lucifer told her. “The reasons why there should be obvious, but there is nothing I can do because he has as much right to be there as anyone because of his spawn.”

“Is that all?” Lucifer nodded, and Linda was glad that at least she wasn’t on that list. “I know that you have opened up a great deal to Chloe, and somewhat less to me. From what Trixie has told me, I know that you’ve opened up to her too, but you are the one who has to decide whether you can expand your circle. You have to decide if it’s worth it to try.”

“Of course, it’s worth it, doctor. Otherwise I wouldn’t be doing it,” Lucifer replied as though it should be obvious. 

“I don’t mean worth it for her. I mean worth it for /you/. I’m worried about you, Lucifer. I see you pushing yourself and your feelings aside. In this instance, I agree that it’s necessary, but I want you to be aware of the potential problem. A relationship only works if it’s a partnership. Your feelings and desires are just as important as hers.” 

Lucifer considered it for a moment before he asked, “And if it’s a question of my wants or their /needs/?” 

“Well then of course, their needs would come first,” Linda told him. 

“Then there’s nothing to worry about. The urchin has needed me and so I’ve given up what I want to help her, but otherwise we’re good,” Lucifer told her. At her skeptical look, he continued. “You’ve told me enough times that compromise is important. Chloe and I both want to make a more permanent commitment, but I don’t want to be married for all the reasons I’ve mentioned so we’ve compromised by giving her a wedding without the red tape and the invocation of my father. Everything else has been entirely mutual, I assure you.”

Linda looked searchingly at him and considered his words before nodding. He did make sense. More so than usual. Perhaps fifty years of soul-searching is something she should recommend to all of her clients she thought amusedly. She had been worried that he had come back and thrown himself so completely into her and Trixie that he was neglecting himself, and he was in a way, but only because he had to, and seemed to still have enough spark to fight for what he wanted too otherwise he wouldn’t have stood his ground about the marriage. “Fair enough. Just make sure you think about what I said,” she told him and he nodded.


	30. Chapter 30

On the way home, they stopped to pick up dinner by Trixie’s request, but as they were pulling in Lucifer got a text from Chloe that she would be late, and she was wrapping up a difficult case. Lucifer texted her to be careful and he and Trixie had dinner alone and then she spent some more time practicing on the piano. She had managed to get her scales just as good with her right hand as with her left that morning, so Lucifer suggested she try with both hands at the same time as he went to his room to watch television, not wanting the one in the living room to disturb her while she was playing. 

Lucifer kept half an ear on her even as he watched the television and it didn’t take long before she was doing well with both hands. He considered making it even more difficult for her, but decided against it. Her next lesson was in the morning, so there was no need to keep challenging her tonight. Chloe hadn’t come home by the time Trixie went to bed, so Lucifer took over the piano as he waited. He didn’t hear the elevator come up, engrossed as he was in his music, so she surprised him when she stepped into his line of sight and he grinned at her. “Welcome home, darling. I saved you some dinner and the urchin is already in bed…is that blood?” he went from charming to alarmed in the blink of an eye as he got up and started looking her over for injuries. 

“It’s not mine,” she assured him. “The suspect was a little…recalcitrant.” 

“I see. Would you like me to go down and inspire a little cooperation?” he asked hopefully. 

She laughed. “Much as I would like to see that, all I want right now is a good meal, a nice shower and to fall asleep in your arms…and wings.” 

Lucifer chuckled. “Anything you wish, dearest.” That was definitely a better idea in his opinion. “I’ll even help you in the shower with all those hard to reach spots,” he drawled suggestively pulling her in for a short kiss and she hummed in agreement before sitting down to eat. The next two weeks seemed to fly by, and Trixie was getting less and less dependent on Lucifer being nearby. A few days before the almost wedding, she had even stopped asking him where he was going and mentioned the idea of having a sleepover with Maze the night of the wedding. 

When he brought it up with Chloe she immediately agreed. Both because it would be good for Trixie and because the night alone with Lucifer sounded perfect. The Friday before the wedding she didn’t see Lucifer at all. By the time she got off work, he was already out at his bachelor party with Dan and Amenadiel, and she was quickly whisked away by Maze, Ella, and Linda for her bachelorette party. This one went much better that the last thankfully since there were no ulterior motives at play. 

Lucifer’s bachelor party went both well and terrible. Amenadiel was in charge of planning it, and he ended up doing ‘research’ on the matter and it was more than a little stereotypical, right down to the strippers. Dan watched him skeptically the entire time, waiting for the moment he would have to intervene for Chloe’s sake, and surprised when it never came. Lucifer didn’t stay /entirely/ on the right side of the line, but he didn’t cross it too far, even when one of the strippers boldly propositioned him. 

Amenadiel was more uncomfortable than anything, and with Dan keeping an eagle eye on Lucifer, the bachelor was the only one to have very much fun, and even then it left a lot to be desired. He was all for strippers usually, but they had long since been old news for him. It was enjoyable, but bland. Needless to say, the party ended far sooner than Lucifer’s usually did, but with him being unable to touch, there wasn’t much else to keep it going. 

The next morning, Lucifer went downstairs and started decorating Lux while the plan was for Chloe to be with the girls getting ready. Amenadiel and Dan both pitched in to help with the decorating and Chloe was suppose to be there at four to get started. The ‘ceremony’ itself was just going to be simple. She would get all the attention and fanfare of the walk in, then she and Lucifer would say vows that they’d written themselves and then the party would start and they would open the doors of Lux, while the children would head upstairs and Trixie would babysit Charlie. Other than the bride and groom, the rest of the adults were going to take turns going up to check on them every hour and they all had their cell phones just in case Trixie needed to call. They would have liked if they could stay, but even Lucifer couldn’t ignore the laws enough to have children in Lux while it was open. 

Finally four o’clock rolled around and Maze, Linda and Ella came in and sat down. That was the cue for Lucifer to get into place, and he took a few deep breaths for calm before he hit the button to start the music. Once the music started Chloe came in and took his breath away. She walked slowly up to him and he reached out and took her hand as soon as she was close enough, and the other once she was in front of him. They had decided that Chloe would go first, just because she was more comfortable being emotional in front of people. 

She looked up at him and started speaking in a shaky voice. “Lucifer, when I first met you, you completely irritated me and completely intrigued me at the same time. The more time we spent together and the more I got to see beneath the surface the more I found someone that I truly wanted to know. I fell in love with you years before I got to have you, but the struggles we’ve been through to get here have given us a foundation of steel. I love you more than I could ever have imagined and spending the rest of my life with you is the greatest give I could ask for. You may be the devil, but you will always be my angel. For the rest of my life and the rest of my eternity.” She had completely forgotten what she was going to say about halfway through and had to wing it, and judging by the unshed tears in Lucifer’s eyes, it had been good enough.

“Chloe, I’ve had women…and men…falling all over me for my entire time on earth and I thought that made me happy. Then I met you and you were immune to all my charms. You challenged me. You pushed me. You forced me to see myself through others’ eyes. Somehow, you saw something worthwhile in me, and even more amazingly somehow got me to believe it. You taught me how to love and more importantly how to be myself. You’ve been my rock in the times when I had nothing to hold on to. You’ve put me back together every time I’ve fallen apart. You gave me something to fight for. Something to live for. Something to die for,” he paused a moment to clear his throat around the lump in it before continuing with the same promise he had made her before she moved in. “I am yours and only yours, heart, soul, body, and everything in between for as long as you will have me, and I am the luckiest devil in the world to be standing here pledging you my life. I will love you until the end of time.” 

He pulled the rings out of his pocket and handed her his before sliding hers onto her finger. “With this ring, I pledge my life to you for the rest of yours.” 

She slid his ring on his finger and said, “With this ring I pledge you the rest of my life.” He finished by pulling her into a searing kiss, partially to get the attention off his heartfelt words, and partially because he couldn’t hold himself back anymore, and judging by the tears streaming down her face, she wasn’t going to wait much longer either. Neither of them heard the clapping of their guests, including Trixie’s happy cheers, and they didn’t break apart until they needed air. They walked to the group, joined at the hip and accepted their congratulations and even Lucifer accepted the hugs halfway graciously. They all had a celebratory drink, and even Trixie was allowed one sip of wine for the occasion before Amenadiel took her and Charlie upstairs and Maze opened the doors of the club letting people in. 

Once the place was to capacity, Lucifer signaled Maze, who had been waiting for it. Maze grabbed a microphone, stood on the bar and as the music stopped all eyes turned to her. “Ladies and Gentlemen, let me introduce for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Lucifer Morningstar!” she said as the lights guy moved the spotlight down to where they were standing next to the piano. 

“Lucifer!” Chloe whispered, hiding her face in his neck. 

“What, darling? I have to make sure that everyone is aware that I’m off the market don’t I?” he grinned and laughed, pushing her away from him and into a spin as he held her hand above her head, before grabbing her waist and lifting her up to sit on the piano. Once she was seated and he whispered, “Stay,” he sat down and began to play. “Close your eyes. Give me your hand darling,” he half spoke and half sang before he began singing earnestly. “Can you feel my heart beating? Do you understand? Do you feel the same? Am I only dreaming? Is this burning, an eternal flame…” 

Chloe blushed brightly at all the attention, but her smile threatened to break her face in two as he sang the song that he had sung to her once before. At the time she had doubted that he was singing it to her, but looking back and knowing what she knew now, there was no question in her mind. Just like back then, his eyes barely left hers for the entire song and when the last notes faded, he pulled her off the piano and into his lap as he kissed her deeply and the whole place broke out in applause.


	31. Chapter 31

Around eleven that night, Lucifer and Chloe went upstairs along with Maze and Linda to get the kids. Linda thought it would be a good idea to double check with Trixie and make sure she would be okay with Maze for the night before they let her go, but Trixie assured them she would be fine and that she’d see them tomorrow. Lucifer and Chloe went back down to rejoin Ella and Dan who were the only ones left from their group and they partied for a few more hours before Lucifer decided he’d delayed his wedding night long enough and whisked Chloe back upstairs and found a new best night of both their lives, and didn’t fall asleep until the sun was starting to come up. 

When they woke up, it was well after the normal lunchtime, but still early enough to be considered a late lunch, but Lucifer still cooked a breakfast. He told Chloe to stay in bed and she realized why when he brought in a large serving tray and they both ate breakfast in bed. “I called Maze while you were cooking,” she admitted. 

“Oh? And how is the little urchin?” Lucifer asked. 

“She’s okay. She ended up in Maze’s bed, but calmed down once she wasn’t alone.”

“Good. While I don’t find her presence particularly loathsome, it will be nice to move around freely.”

“I’m glad you think so, because I was thinking, since she passed this final test, maybe you could come back to work tomorrow?” she suggested. 

Lucifer grinned happily. “I’d be delighted, darling.” 

“Great. Maze already agreed to start sitting with her again most days, and there’s still the backup babysitter anytime Maze isn’t available.”

“As long as Maze knows to continue taking her to her piano lessons,” Lucifer reminded her and Chloe nodded. 

Once they got up an hour later, Lucifer grabbed the paper to skim as he usually did and blinked in surprise for a moment before laughing and tossing it to Chloe. Her eyes widened as soon as she saw the front page. The headline said it all. ‘Owner of LA’s hottest nightclub wed to local detective.’ She saw two pictures, one of her sitting on the piano as he sang and the other of them dancing at some point during the night. She quickly skimmed the article to make sure there was nothing there that she would have to live down and sighed with relief that there wasn’t. It mentioned Lucifer’s past most eligible bachelor status, talked about how in love they looked, told what song he was singing to her, and how Lux had opened late while they had a private ceremony, but nothing was bad. By the end she was smiling. She didn’t particularly like the publicity, but at least it was good publicity. She set it aside to cut out and put in her secret keepsake box later. 

Maze brought Trixie back at dinnertime and gladly accepted the invitation to stay for dinner. Neither she nor Ella were much for cooking, and they were both glad that Lucifer bought the apartment and put it in Maze’s name because rent on top of their new takeout budget would have been stretching things. 

Trixie’s first thought when she was told that Lucifer was going back to work and that Maze would be sitting her was also her piano lessons, and her mother assured her that Maze would take her. That night Trixie managed to sleep in her own bed, but they woke her up as they were leaving so she could get ready for her piano lesson. 

When Lucifer walked into the precinct, he greeted many of the people he knew before heading upstairs to the lab. He knew that Ella would never forgive him if he didn’t come say hello when he got there. As he expected, he was attacked with a hug as soon as the door opened and he chuckled and tentatively hugged her back. “Good morning, Ella.” 

“Welcome back Lucifer!” 

After a moment or two of small talk, Chloe popped her head in. “We’ve got a case.” 

“Excellent,” Lucifer rubbed his hands together. “Let’s go catch a killer shall we?” 

Chloe rolled her eyes at his excitement as they walked out. It ended up being a relatively easy case and they had the killer by the end of the day, and he confessed quickly after Lucifer worked his magic. “Nice to start the week with a win, eh detective?” Lucifer said with a smirk.

“That it is,” she said with a smile as they headed home.

Chloe helped Lucifer make a quick dinner, which Maze stayed for, and then she jumped in the shower and when she got out she heard the piano. She walked out, still drying her hair and stopped in the bedroom doorway just watching with a smile as Lucifer and Trixie were playing together. 

Trixie had a good grasp on the basics now and was learning simple songs, so she asked Lucifer if he would play with her. He hesitated for a moment before he agreed and motioned for her to start. She had some practice with playing with him already from when he taught her Heart and Soul, so she didn’t get flustered when he joined in, filling out her song nicely. It took a few minutes before he noticed Chloe standing there and stopped which made Trixie stop too. 

“No, don’t stop. It’s nice,” she told him and he shrugged sheepishly and nodded for Trixie to pick it back up again and quickly joined in. Chloe grabbed a book and went to sit on the couch, but ended up watching them more than reading. She would never get tired of the way he played, and she could easily get used to seeing them play together. She always wondered if he knew just how on display his emotions were when he was lost in the music, and right now she could see the pride and even love in his eyes when he glanced over at Trixie, who kept looking up at him with a happy grin. This was everything she’d ever dreamed of. 

Over the course of the week, Lucifer had noticed a few things different about Chloe, but quickly put them out of his mind. It was nothing big enough to mention. So she cracked the corner of her desk when she hit it while she was mad. She took down a guy much larger than her with seemingly little effort. Her instincts were more spot on than usual. Nothing major, and easy enough to forget about. It wasn’t until the next week that he started to get the idea that something strange might just be going on. 

They were at a crime scene when Chloe’s phone rang. She answered and Lucifer saw her face go white and just barely managed to grab her and steady her before she fell down. “But she’s okay?” she said into the phone and Lucifer looked at her worriedly. “Okay, I’ll be there as soon as I can,” she said as she hung up and immediately turned to Lucifer. “Trixie’s at the hospital, but she seems fine. She fell over the second floor banister at Julie’s house and landed on her head. May said that she was unconscious for a minute or two but by the time she got to her she had woken up and seemed good as new, but they took her to the hospital anyway to be sure. I need to go…” she explained worriedly and shifted as she looked at the crime scene and back at the door. 

“Go on. I’ll handle things here,” he told her. He’d played the serious detective before and he could handle it for one afternoon. He knew they couldn’t both leave and as much as he wanted to check on the urchin, her mother was the better choice and had more right to.

“Are you sure?” she asked worriedly. 

“I promise I won’t mess anything up,” he told her and she took one more look at the scene, looked around at all the uniforms that were processing it and then nodded. 

“Okay. Thanks Lucifer. I’ll call you as soon as I know something,” she promised. 

Once she was gone, Lucifer tried to focus on the case and did end up catching the bad guy, but the entire day he was distracted by what happened to the child. Falling from the second floor was easily survivable, landing on her head less so, but still possible. Getting up like nothing happened less than a minute later without a scratch was unlikely to the point of absurd and when he got the call from Chloe saying that she was perfectly fine, not even a bruise, he knew for sure that something was going on. 

He called Amenadiel on his way home and asked him to come by. He needed to test something and he knew that Chloe and Trixie would be waiting for him there. She’d told him that she was taking Trixie home once the hospital released her. He paid even less attention to the speed limit than normal today as he rushed to get home.


	32. Chapter 32

Amenadiel got there at the same time as Lucifer and, rushed over as the devil pulled up. “What’s the emergency brother? What happened?” he asked concerned. 

“I’m not sure yet. I need your help to figure it out,” Lucifer told him heading quickly for the elevator up to the penthouse and Amenadiel followed. Once they were upstairs, Lucifer headed straight for Trixie. “Are you alright, urchin?” 

“I’m fine,” she told him, rolling her eyes. “It didn’t even hurt really.” Sometimes they could be so overprotective. 

Lucifer looked unconvinced and turned to Amenadiel. “Can you do your thing, brother?” 

Amenadiel looked beyond confused but put his hands together in a praying position and Lucifer felt the power settle over him even though it didn’t affect him. “Lucifer? What’s going on?” Chloe asked. 

Lucifer felt an icy hand grip his chest even as Amenadiel opened his eyes and said, “It’s not working?”

Lucifer snorted and grabbed an apple and tossed it up in the air and it slowed to almost a crawl the second it lost contact with his hand. “Oh it’s working alright,” he said bitterly. 

“Cool!” Trixie exclaimed seeing the apple hanging in midair. 

Amenadiel dropped his arms and the apple fell to the ground. “How is this possible, brother?” 

Lucifer ran a hand through his hair. “I don’t know. I just…don’t know…” he muttered as he paced. 

Chloe grabbed his arms and stopped him. “Lucifer. You’re scaring me. Please tell me what’s going on.”

“His power doesn’t affect angels or demons. Beatrice should not have been unharmed from that fall. You should not have been able to…”

“So…what? What does that mean?” she asked worriedly. “Could Trixie have been turned into a demon and somehow turned me?” She latched onto the only explanation to pop into her mind. 

“There is a simple way to find out,” Amenadiel said, much calmer than Lucifer at the idea, though just as confused. He reached out for Trixie since he was closest. “Give me your hand?” he coaxed gently, and when she did, he closed his eyes and reached out with his mind. It didn’t take long before his eyes snapped open wide in surprise. He went over to Chloe. “Now you,” he said as he reached out his hand. 

“What did you find?” Lucifer asked nearly frantic. 

“Just a minute. Let me confirm, please, Lucifer,” Amenadiel said calmly as Chloe put her hand in his and he closed his eyes and repeated the process. When he opened his eyes again, he looked perplexed and turned to Lucifer. “They are celestials,” he said, before turning to Chloe and explaining, “Angels, as you call them.” 

Lucifer shook his head. “No. That’s not…you said you checked years ago. You said she wasn’t.”

“I did check and I am a hundred percent certain that she was not one then, just as I am a hundred percent certain that she is one now,” Amenadiel told him. 

Lucifer grabbed a glass off the bar and threw it at the wall where it shattered. “Damnit dad! Can’t you ever just stay out of my life!” he yelled at the sky before storming out onto the balcony. 

Chloe was still trying to wrap her mind around this, and his reaction didn’t help. Part of her worried that he was upset because now they could have forever and he didn’t want her that long, but the bigger part of her knew that wasn’t it. He was upset because, once again, someone else was pulling the strings in their lives and he didn’t know why or how. “Why would he…”

Amenadiel shook his head. “I don’t think my father did this,” he told her. 

“Then who? How?” she asked confused. 

“Your divinity…it felt almost exactly like Lucifer’s. I think somehow he did this unintentionally. I’m now sure how.”

“And you’re sure that your father wasn’t involved?” she asked worriedly. 

“Almost certain. He would never do such a favor for Lucifer and there’s nothing else this could be but a favor. Even if he did, he would be here to hold it over his head,” Amenadiel assured her. “Now that he is back in the Silver City there would be nothing stopping him from coming down and demanding some type of payment for this favor.” All of his respect for his father had ended when he sent Trixie to hell, so he had a much clearer image of him in his mind now, and didn’t have any doubt about his statements. 

Chloe nodded, trusting his judgement, and it matched her own thoughts too from the little she knew. Now she just had to figure out how to convince Lucifer of that. “I should go talk to Lucifer so we can sit down and try to figure out how this happened.” 

“Why is he so mad?” Trixie asked with tears in her eyes. 

“He just thinks someone is manipulating us for some reason,” she explained. “And he’s probably more scared than mad.” 

Trixie nodded and went to sit at the piano, while her mother went to talk to Lucifer. She knew that playing helped him when he was upset so she hoped it would help her too. 

Chloe stepped out and placed a hand on Lucifer’s back as she stepped up beside him and leaned on the rail in what had become their normal pose when Lucifer was upset. “I’m sorry,” he said quickly before she could speak. “I didn’t mean to lose my temper. Is she okay?” 

“She’s fine. She’s just worried about you,” Chloe told him and gave that a moment to sink in before she said, “Amenadiel is sure that your father didn’t do this.”

“Who else could have? No one else can make angels. The only ones who would even consider it without my father’s orders are right here and I wouldn’t even know how and Amenadiel was honestly shocked, so I doubt he does either.” 

“He said that we feel almost exactly like you so he thinks that it’s something you did accidentally,” she told him. 

“But…that’s not possible,” he told her. “At least it shouldn’t be,” he added wracking his brain to try and figure out how this could have happened. 

“Come on. Let’s go inside and brainstorm and see if we can’t figure this out hmm?” she said, seeing that he was less upset and more confused now. He nodded and let her lead him inside. 

As soon as he sat down on the couch, Trixie abandoned the piano and curled up at his side, hugging him around the middle and Chloe smiled and curled up to his other side. Hopefully it would help him feel better for this conversation. 

Amenadiel came over and sat on the chair and said, “So I was thinking and I may have a theory.” Lucifer looked at him expectantly, so he continued. “You are aware that divinity and humans should never mix correct?” 

“Obviously. But it’s not like we haven’t been for years already,” Lucifer said impatiently. 

“Yes, but not directly. You said that you used your wings to keep Trixie sheltered in hell correct?” Lucifer nodded. “And has Chloe had a lot of contact with your wings?” 

“He wraps them around us when we sleep,” Chloe told him. 

“I think that perhaps the frequent contact with the essence of your divinity as seeped into them. There is likely an emotional component as well. Some level of intent, or it still doesn’t make sense but it’s the best theory I have.” 

Lucifer considered the matter and nodded, which Amenadiel took as the dismissal it was, and even after he left, Lucifer was lost in thought for a long time. Trixie and Chloe just sat there with him in silence, waiting for him to collect himself, but it was almost an hour before he spoke. “I’m sorry, love. It seems I’ve managed to take away all your choices again. I never meant…” 

Chloe put a finger over his lips. “Stop. You took nothing away from me, Lucifer. I’ve been thinking about Amenadiel’s theory that intent was somehow a part of it, and I think that I may be the one who caused this. At least for me. I can’t speak for Trixie on this one.”

“What do you mean?” he asked, furrowing his brow. 

“Not long after you got back and we got things settled with us, it dawned on me that once I died, we could never see each other again since you can’t get into heaven or hell and I didn’t want to face an eternity in either place without you, so most nights I fall asleep wishing that I could somehow live forever with you,” she told him with a soft smile. 

“I think it’s my fault too,” Trixie chimed in. “I wanted to never have to leave you and I never wanted you to leave me.” 

Chloe sighed. She was sure that she was right now. “It seems we’re the ones who took your choices away, Lucifer,” she said sadly. “I know when we made our promises to each other, you only intended to the end of my human life so I won’t hold it against you…” 

Lucifer cut her off with hard kiss before pulling back to look in her eyes. “Darling, forever sounds so much better to me than any human lifetime. Even if I were willing to break a promise, this is one that I would never break. However it happened, I still got the better end of this bargain.”


	33. Chapter 33

“So, you’re happy then?” Chloe asked hopefully. 

“Yes, darling. I’m very happy, but I’m also very worried,” he admitted. 

“Why?” Trixie asked. 

“Should she hear this?” Chloe asked him before he answered Trixie. 

“I’m part of it now, Mom. I have a right to know,” she said firmly. 

“She’s right about that,” Lucifer told her and Chloe just sighed and nodded, so Lucifer answered Trixie’s question. “If my father didn’t do this, then he will not be happy about it, and I don’t have the slightest clue what he’ll do.” 

“What /can/ he do?” Chloe asked. 

“Anything up to and including erasing us all from existence,” he said softly. 

Chloe was brought up short for a moment before took a deep breath and took the bull by the horns. “Okay, so let’s think about this logically. What are our options?”

“The only options we have are the ones he gives us,” Lucifer told her. 

“Maybe we could get some help…” 

Lucifer snorted. “You want me to stage another rebellion in heaven? You realize I’ve tried that before…and failed.”

“But maybe it could work this time?” she asked hopefully knowing that she was grasping at straws. 

“I’m a little older and smarter now, dearest. It was always doomed to fail for one simple reason. There is no force that can stand against him. Every angel in heaven could be on our side and we would still fail. He could kill us all with just a wave of the hand. The only being in existence that could possibly stand against him would be our mother, and she’s gone.”

“Could she come back?” Trixie asked. 

“Unfortunately not. I sent her to another world. And the only thing that can open that door is now in two pieces. One with her and the other here with us,” Lucifer told them. “Even dad can’t get to her, nor can she get back.”

“Do you think if we go to him and explain, apologize, something, that we could get a better deal than if he finds out on his own?” Chloe asked. If fighting wasn’t an option, maybe negotiating would be. 

Lucifer shook his head. “No. Because if he doesn’t already know, then telling him something he doesn’t know will certainly set off his temper. You do remember the story of Sodom and Gomorrah right? He likes to be considered all powerful and all knowing and pointing out otherwise never ends well.”

“And you don’t want to grovel,” Chloe half-joked trying to lighten the mood. 

“No. I really don’t. But I would grovel for you. I’ve done it before,” he told her. 

“You have?” she asked. 

“Do you remember when Malcom shot me and was going after you?” Lucifer asked and when Chloe nodded, he continued. “I knew I was dying and wouldn’t be able to save you, so I groveled. I promised him anything and everything if he would just keep you safe.” 

“But you didn’t die,” Chloe told him. 

“Yes. I did. I died and ended up in hell, but Mom had escaped and left the door cracked so I was able to slip back through and since I wasn’t gone for very long, I popped right back into my body while it was still viable. I thought my father’s price for saving you was to put my mother back into hell, but knowing what I do now, I don’t think he had a hand in any of it.”

Chloe was struck again with how much he loved her. Long before she ever imagined he did. They were just starting to get along when that incident happened. She put it out of her mind for now, and refocused back onto their problem. “Okay, so what you’re saying is that there is absolutely nothing we can do about this right?” When he nodded, she said, “Okay then there’s no point in worrying about it. Whatever happens will happen, and we have no control over it when it does, so we might as well put it out of our minds.”

“Easier said than done, love,” Lucifer grumbled. 

“I know, but worrying over it does none of us any good and just makes things worse,” she told him. 

Lucifer sighed. “You’re right. I’ll try. But I can’t make any promises.”

“I don’t expect you to. I can’t make any promises on this one either,” she admitted. 

After a long moment of silence, Trixie was the one to break them out of the funk. “So if we’re angels does that mean we have wings like yours?” 

Lucifer chuckled a bit and said, “I’m honestly not sure. None of this has ever happened before. Why don’t you both stand up and try to concentrate on having wings and see if any appear?” he suggested. 

Chloe and Trixie both stood up and it didn’t take long for two pure white wings to spring from Chloe’s back and she gasped before reaching out to touch them as if to see if they were real. Trixie frowned and closed her eyes and tried harder, but nothing happened so she just plopped back onto the couch with an annoyed huff. “No fair. I want wings too,” she said petulantly. 

“You might get them later, urchin,” Lucifer told her. “There has never been a child angel before.”

“There hasn’t?” she asked confused. 

“Nope. We were all created full grown. The closest thing to a child angel is Charlie, but he’s only half angel, plus Amenadiel was falling when he was conceived, so we couldn’t really judge anything for sure by him anyway, but he doesn’t have wings yet either. Maybe when you’re grown they’ll come out.”

“Okay,” she cheered up a bit. “Will you teach me to fly when I get them?” 

“I suppose I could be persuaded,” he told her distastefully. He would have to teach Chloe anyway, and it would probably take her more than a few years to get used to them enough to be able to teach the child herself. He supposed he could ask Amenadiel to teach her, but for some reason he couldn’t figure out, that idea didn’t appeal to him. 

“I’ve made up my mind about my name,” she announced suddenly. 

“Oh?” Lucifer asked with a raised eyebrow. 

“I want to be a Morningstar. If I’m an angel now it fits much better,” she told them. 

“Are you sure, Monkey?” Chloe asked, and she nodded. 

“Okay, well we’ve still got about a month until school starts, so lets give it two weeks and if you still feel the same way we’ll have time to get it done before school,” Chloe promised. 

“I still have to go to school?” she whined. 

“Yes. It’s even more important now to learn as much as you can,” Chloe told her. 

“But you’ll have to be careful,” Lucifer told her. “As much as I’m all for the base emotions, you are much stronger than humans now. You will have to avoid getting into any fights until you learn to control that strength and that can take decades. Even if my father doesn’t intend to punish us, killing a human will change that very quickly. It’s one of our highest laws.” He needed to make sure to get across to her just how serious this rule was, and if she only ever followed one rule in her life it needed to be this one. 

Trixie seemed to get it because she nodded solemnly. “I understand. I’ll be really careful and not lose my temper.” Knowing that she could kill someone if she wasn’t careful was bad enough, but knowing that they could all be killed for it was worse. 

Now that she was sure that Trixie understood the gravity of the situation, she set out to get her mind off of it. “So what other things can we do now other than super strength and flying?” 

Lucifer shrugged. “We all have different gifts. I don’t know if you’ll have my gifts or develop your own. That’s something we’ll have to figure out as we go along.”

Chloe suddenly considered something else. “Will I be as vulnerable around you as you are around me?” she asked. “And what about Trixie?”

“Well that’s something we can test easily,” he told her as he got up and grabbed a knife from the kitchen and handed it to her. “Just a little cut. I don’t want you hurt,” he told her. 

She nodded and put the knife along her arm and pulled, but nothing happened. “I see what you meant now about just feeling a little pressure,” she told him.

He sighed with relief. He couldn’t take it if he made her more vulnerable than she had to be. Chloe beckoned Trixie over to test her and she didn’t bleed either, which made him feel even better. “Good. We’re all good then.”

“Not all of us,” Chloe said. “I still don’t like you being vulnerable either.”

He shrugged. “Maybe I’m not anymore. I never knew what caused it to begin with. Maybe you being celestial now negates it.” He doubted it, but maybe it would help her feel better. He hadn’t expected her to take that at face value and she didn’t. She just handed him the knife. He put it against his arm and winced in anticipation, but surprisingly nothing happened. He tried again harder, but still nothing and he looked at the knife in wonder before stabbing it hard into his thigh. 

“Lucifer!” Chloe yelled, grabbing the knife and pulling it out. 

“It’s okay,” he told her with a look of wonder on his face. “I’m fine. See?” He pulled apart the hole in his pants. “No blood.”

“So none of us can be hurt?” Trixie asked hopefully. 

“We’re a lot more durable, but there are some things that can still hurt us,” he told her, not wanting her to get reckless. “Other angels and demons can hit hard enough to cause damage and hell-forged and heavenly weapons can hurt us, but nothing human can.”

“That’s awesome!” Trixie exclaimed.


	34. Chapter 34

Chloe couldn’t help but chuckle before she said, “Yes and now that all the crucial stuff is worked out, I think it’s time for someone to go to bed.”

Trixie groaned. “I still have a bedtime too?” 

“Even I must sleep child. You know this,” Lucifer pointed out. Thankfully that seemed to do the trick because she got up and gave him a tight hug, which he returned with only a little bit of hesitation this time, before hugging her mother and going to bed.

Once she was in bed and the door was closed, Chloe turned to Lucifer. She did have some more serious questions. “Are you sure that she’s not going to be stuck at this age forever?” 

“Am I completely positive? No. I can’t say that I am. This has never happened before, remember. But I don’t believe that she will be. Charlie seems to age just fine, and while it’s a different situation, there is no reason to believe that she wouldn’t,” Lucifer told her. 

“Okay, so we’ll just watch and assume that she’ll continue to age until we see something otherwise,” she decided. 

“That does seem the prudent course of action, yes.” 

“And you really think she’ll get wings as she gets older? Do you have any guess as to when?” 

“It seems logical that she will. She is a full celestial, and we all have wings. My best guess would be when she reaches full maturity, but they may grow in slowly over time and start at any point between now and then.”

“I worry about her being able to keep this secret,” Chloe admitted. 

“She is a smart child,” Lucifer assured her. “Besides, it’s not that difficult. When have you ever known me to try to keep it secret. No one ever believes me unless I throw the truth in their face, and she’s smart enough not to do that.” 

“Okay, but not being suspicious with her strength and such…”

Lucifer laughed. “How many times did you see me shot, stabbed, come out of explosions, and so on, and just found other explanations or dismissed it?”

Chloe chuckled. “Yeah, you have a point.”

“Don’t worry so much, detective. It’s not the end of the world if someone finds out,” Lucifer told her. 

“Yeah, okay. You’re right. It’s just…a lot. You know?” 

Lucifer smiled wryly and kissed her head. “Yes. I do know, but truthfully I would be more worried about you spilling the beans. At least for the moment.”

“What do you mean?” she asked almost offended. 

“Wings tend to be rather unpredictable until you get full control. They can pop out at the slightest provocation. I mean, when I got my wings back after losing them for so long, even I had a few accidents and I’d had millennia of control in the past.”

“What kind of accidents?” she asked amusedly, needing a moment to consider the rest before talking about it. 

“Most of them little things, knocking things over when they’d suddenly appear, but once, during foreplay they decided to make themselves known,” he told her with a chuckle.

She couldn’t help but giggle at the idea. “I bet that went over well.”

“As I mentioned, you humans do have ways of explaining away most anything. She assumed they were something called cosplay and I was attempting to roleplay. She even offered to be the devil.”

Chloe laughed aloud at that. “Well you do have a bit of a habit of making everything about you,” she teased, and he laughed along with her. Once the moment was over she turned back to the serious stuff. “Okay, so I’ll have to be pretty careful with the whole wings thing for a while. I would say I can take some time off work until I have a handle on it, but that’s not really possible.”

“Why not?” he asked. 

“Well, for one thing, I’ve taken too much time off recently already with the whole situation with Trixie and taking another unscheduled absence would put my job in jeopardy. I mean, I might could get away with a day or two and claim the flu, but I doubt that would be long enough.”

“And you don’t believe suddenly sprouting wings in the middle of a chase would put your job…and everyone’s sanity…in jeopardy?” he drawled. 

“Well…yeah…maybe. But I was going to say that also, it wouldn’t really help. It’s completely different situations. If I’m chasing a killer, I’m more likely to subconsciously do everything to stop them, even if it means showing my wings while there isn’t as much temptation otherwise.”

“That is a point,” Lucifer told her. “But there’s only so many ways or times that we can explain it away though.” 

She sighed. He had an excellent point and there was an easy solution, but she really didn’t want to. “I know. But the only other way would be to quit my job, and I don’t want to do that.”

“I don’t want you to do that either, detective, but…”

“I know. We’ll try it for now. You said it could be explained away once or twice yeah? If it becomes a problem I’ll quit.”

Lucifer nodded. “That seems reasonable. Just know, that even if you do end up having to quit for now, you can always go back to it in a few years or even a few decades or centuries. It doesn’t have to be permanent.”

“Thank you, Lucifer,” she said relieved, but that brought up something else she wanted to say so she took a deep breath and looked up at him. “I meant what I said before too, you know. I know you don’t think you will right now, but I won’t hold it against you if you ever change your mind with us. You didn’t sign on for forever.”

“I can assure you, darling, my mind is quite made up. However, I do feel the need to point out that you didn’t sign on for forever either, so you are more than welcome to change your mind as well.”

She grinned and shook her head. “Never,” she whispered, capturing his lips in a heartfelt kiss. 

“Do you think…should we tell Amenadiel what we’ve figured out. In case he wants to make Linda one of us too?” Chloe asked. 

“It couldn’t hurt to tell him, but I seriously doubt he would ever do that. For one, while he and Linda are comfortable together, they aren’t truly in love the way we are. Besides, while he has gotten much better, he still would not defy father to that extreme.” 

“Yeah. That makes sense. But he should still have the option,” she told him. 

“And we will give it to him. We still aren’t sure about anything though, remember?” he reminded her before his eyes lit up. “Perhaps we should test it to be sure.”

“Test it? How?” she asked curiously. 

“Well if it is simply the contact with my wings causing it, it would be easy to replicate, perhaps with Ms. Lopez. However, if it is triggered by our love and desire, then nothing would happen…”he trailed off a minute as he considered. “Perhaps it isn’t something Amenadiel could replicate anyway. My gift is desire, and that could have something to do with how this happened.”

“That’s a theory, but I’m not sure about testing it. I mean…how would we even do that? And what would the risks be?” 

“Well, if she were to share a bed with us for a couple weeks, only to sleep mind you, and sleep wrapped in my wings as well, it should be enough to test, and as far as risks, the only one would be that she could become a celestial as well.”

“But what about your father? What would he do if you ended up making more?” 

“It would be no different to now. Making three angels would have us in no more trouble than two. I could always excuse it as an attempt to understand how it happened to ensure no more accidents.” 

“But wouldn’t it put Ella in his line of fire too if he takes offense?” she asked worriedly. 

Lucifer considered that for a moment before giving a half-shrug. “Perhaps, but I think the danger to her would be far less than to you and the urchin. Her death wouldn’t hurt me the same way and she would have a much easier time following his rules.”

Chloe thought about it for a minute before nodding. “It can’t hurt to give her the option. As long as we make sure to explain all the risks.” She had no problem with Ella sharing their bed for a while. She knew that nothing would happen. Even before he had committed to her, there had never been any spark between the two of them. She was more of a little sister to him. 

“We should gather the family together tomorrow and explain all this and we can pull her aside later and talk to her. That way we only have to explain it once and it can be done here without any curious ears attempting to overhear.”

Chloe nodded. “That’s a good idea. If you message Amenadiel and Maze, I’ll text Ella and Dan. Lunch?” 

Lucifer nodded, already pulling out his phone. It only took them a few minutes to send the necessary texts and an hour later they had acceptances from everyone and could turn their attention to each other for the remainder of the night, and when they went to sleep, Lucifer still had his wings wrapped around them. It had become habit, by now.


	35. Chapter 35

The next day, everyone in the know arrived for lunch, which Lucifer, of course, made. By silent agreement they saved the heavy discussions for after though when they made their way to the living area. Once they were all seated and comfortable, Lucifer broke the news. “So it seems that something…interesting…has happened. The detective and the urchin have become celestials…angels.” 

“No way! That is so cool!” Ella exclaimed.

Maze just looked at them blankly as she tried to process, Linda smiled, having already been told by Amenadiel, but Dan exploded. “Oh hell no. I can get you,” he pointed at Chloe. “You’re an adult and can make your own decisions, but how could you do this to Trixie. Without even consulting me!”

“Do calm down, Daniel. It wasn’t intentional,” Lucifer drawled, unconcerned. 

“He’s right,” Chloe snapped a little more irritated. “How could you think I would do something like that with our daughter without consulting you?” 

“You didn’t exactly consult me about her changing her name either,” he snapped back. 

“And if she had your name to begin with, it would have been a different story, but you were the one that didn’t want either of us to take your name when we were married, if you’ll remember,” she shot back. 

“Perhaps we should all calm down,” Lucifer tried to interject but was ignored. 

“I had my reasons,” he yelled at her. 

“And I never got a say then, so why should you have one now!”

“He’s right. We all need to take a step back and relax,” Linda tried, but she was ignored too. 

“Because she’s my daughter damnit! At least she was. Now she’s not even human anymore,” Dan shouted. 

Lucifer had enough. Trixie was curled up in a little ball, and at that last remark from her father, the tears had started falling. He stood up and bellowed, “Enough!” as his eyes glowed red and his voice took on the growling quality of his other side. That was enough to freeze everyone in their tracks. “Do you even see what you are doing to your offspring?” he asked coldly, but much calmer as he sat back down. 

Dan swallowed heavily a few times as Chloe just plopped down as if her strings were cut, an expression of guilt washing over her face. Dan collected himself first and reached out to Trixie but she just flinched away from him and jumped into Lucifer’s lap, burying her face in his chest. He patted her back awkwardly as she cried on him, yet again. “There there, child. It’s all over now.”

“I’m so sorry, baby. I didn’t mean it,” Dan said heartbrokenly. 

Trixie turned and glared at him, “Yes you did. You don’t want me to be your daughter anymore,” she said angrily. “But I don’t care. Lucifer’s a better daddy than you anyway!” she yelled as she jumped off Lucifer, ran to her room and slammed the door, leaving two completely gobsmacked men behind. 

If the situation had been any different, Chloe might have laughed at the look on Lucifer’s face, but she felt too horrible about what had happened. Lucifer managed to recover first, at least to outward appearances, having much more practice at masking his true feelings and he just sat back and crossed his arms. “Well. It appears you have quite a bit of groveling to do, detective douche.” 

Part of Dan wanted to lash out at Lucifer and blame him for the fact that his daughter seemed to hate him now. That remark about Lucifer being a better dad had cut him to the quick, but he held his tongue, knowing that his temper had caused this problem to begin with. “Yeah. I should probably go…” he trailed off as he headed toward her room and knocked on the door. 

Since the room was soundproofed, she had to crack the door open to say, “Leave me alone,” before slamming it again.

“Please baby, just talk to me,” Dan begged through the closed door. 

“She can’t hear you,” Lucifer told him and when Dan looked at him curiously, he added. “Every room in here is soundproof. Mostly so the sounds of the club downstairs don’t get too loud.” 

“Oh,” Dan sighed in defeat. It made sense really, he just hadn’t considered it. “Then should I just…” he motioned to the door wanting to just walk in. 

“No,” Linda said before anyone else could. “Her room is her safe space, and especially now, she needs it to stay that way. Let’s just give her some time to calm down, and then we can talk it out.” 

Dan nodded sadly and came back to plop into the chair he had vacated. It might help him to understand a bit more about what happened first anyway. “You said something about it not being on purpose? How can you do something like that on accident?” he asked with only a little heat left in his voice. 

“We aren’t completely sure how it happened, naturally, since as far as anyone ever knew it wasn’t possible, but we do have a theory,” Lucifer started. “We believe it was the frequent contact with my wings that was the triggering factor.”

“Divinity and humanity are supposed to be kept separate, which is why there has never been another case like this before,” Amenadiel pointed out. 

“Yes. But when the urchin ended up in hell, my wings were the only thing that could adequately protect her.”

Dan had been about to say something about how he should have kept his wings away from them then, but his statement about protecting Trixie stopped him cold. “So how long as she been…have they been…”

“We don’t know,” Chloe told him honestly. “There was an incident a few days after they got back where she seemed to be so much stronger than should have been possible, but we thought it was just some left over side effects from hell. A living human had never been there before either, and we hadn’t noticed anything else until yesterday, so we didn’t think anything else of it.”

“Now that you mention it, she has been a lot stronger and more durable during our training as well. I hadn’t noticed at the time,” Maze chimed in. 

“What happened yesterday?” Dan asked. 

“She fell from the second floor banister while she was at Julie’s house. She apparently landed on her head, but after a moment unconscious she just got up like nothing happened. The hospital said there wasn’t even a bruise,” Chloe told him. 

“And you didn’t call me?” Dan asked incredulously. “My daughter is in a potentially life-threatening accident and I don’t even get a phone call?!”

Chloe started to bristle again, but when Lucifer tightened his arm around her shoulder and gave her a look, she tried to explain calmly. “If she had been hurt, I would have called you, Dan. You know that. But by the time I found out she seemed to be perfectly fine so there was no point. If the hospital had found anything wrong anyway, I would have called you, but there was nothing wrong with her.”

“But you went,” he said pointedly, having also gotten the hint to stay calm. “She was in the hospital, something wrong or not, and you were there, but I wasn’t.”

“You were on a case,” she told him. “You’ve never bailed on a case for her before as long as I’ve been able to handle it.”

“You were on a case too weren’t you?” he said pointedly. 

“I was perfectly capable of handling the case for her while she tended to the urchin,” Lucifer pointed out. 

“I still should have gotten a call or something at least,” Dan refused to budge. 

Chloe forced herself to see it from his point of view. If all this hadn’t happened, she doubted he would be saying a word about it, but it had and now he was feeling left out and replaced. She sighed, and decided to take a page out of Lucifer’s book. “Maybe you’re right. From now on I’ll call you if anything happens.” She knew that he wasn’t right, but by putting the maybe in front of it, she wasn’t lying, and she fully intended to live up to her promise. Even if it meant calling him multiple times a day every time she did something different. That would teach him. 

“So now that’s settled, can we get back to how totally cool this is?” Ella asked hopefully, realizing the need to lighten the mood. 

Lucifer chuckled. “I have no objection.” 

When no one else objected either, Ella started with the questions. “Do you have wings? Does Trixie? Can you fly now? Does this mean you’ll live forever? What else can you do?” 

Lucifer barked a laugh which cut her off and gave Chloe a chance to answer, looking a little embarrassed. “Yes, I have wings. No, Trixie doesn’t. At least not yet. We think they will grow in as she gets older. No, I haven’t learned to fly yet, but I can. Yes, we will both live forever. We’re stronger than other people, can hear better and see better, but not a whole lot. For example, we can hear loud noises through the soundproofing, but not quiet ones.” She added that part for Dan’s benefit so he wouldn’t start yelling with Trixie in her room thinking she couldn’t hear him. “I’m not sure what else. Lucifer?” she turned to him in question. 

“That’s pretty much it. Except for your individual gifts which we haven’t figured out yet.”

“Gifts?” Dan asked curiously. 

“For example, my gift is desire. You’ve seen me draw out people’s desires before, yes?” Dan nodded. “Amenadiel’s gift is time. He can slow time or speed it up, though unfortunately traveling through time is something that only exists in storybooks.” 

“So you don’t know what Chloe or Trixie’s gifts are yet? How can you find out?” Ella asked. 

“No. We don’t know. There is no test or anything to find out what they are. Not that I know of anyway. We were all told our gifts by our father. I would assume that it will become clear over time what their gifts are. Though since their divinity was taken directly from me they may end up sharing my gift,” Lucifer told them.


	36. Chapter 36

“That is a reasonable hypothesis, but if I had to guess I would say it would be a cross between the two,” Amenadiel suggested. 

“What do you mean, brother?” Lucifer asked curiously. 

“Well, I don’t think that they will share your gift. It is very much tied to you and they are different people, but perhaps some of your talents will become gifts for them,” he suggested. 

“What do you mean by talents?” Lucifer asked. 

“Prior to ten years ago, you had never been on Earth for more than a few weeks at a time. Surely you are aware that talent like you have in music usually takes far longer to develop, so unless you have pianos hidden away somewhere in hell…” Amenadiel told him. 

“I…hadn’t considered that,” Lucifer said with a shrug. “I just enjoy music.”

“It is a talent, brother,” Amenadiel told him. “You have many talents, and any one of them could manifest in either of them as a gift.”

“Trixie has been doing very well on her piano lessons. I hear her teacher has been raving about her talent,” Chloe pointed out. 

“Yes, but she still struggles. If that was her gift, I would think that she wouldn’t struggle as much as she does,” Lucifer told her. 

“Perhaps it is still forming. Perhaps it isn’t her gift at all. There is no way to know right now. I just wanted you to be aware of the possibility,” Amenadiel told them. 

“Back to the whole how did this happen thing…you’re telling me that contact with your wings was enough to make them angels?” Dan asked incredulously. 

“That was the triggering factor, but we believe there was more to it than that,” Lucifer told him before looking at Chloe. “If you would like to share, you are welcome to, but you don’t have to.”

Chloe blushed bright red, but nodded. Dan had a right to know since Trixie was his daughter and Ella would need to know if they were going to approach her about testing the theory. Amenadiel had suggested it, which meant he probably already had some idea and Linda and Maze were her best friends. It was horribly personal, but under the circumstances she could share. “Well, when I would fall asleep wrapped in his wings I was usually wishing that I could have him forever rather than having to be separated when I died and my soul went somewhere he couldn’t get to.” 

“Awww,” Ella cooed. Maze rolled her eyes, Amenadiel nodded, Linda just smiled, and Dan grimaced. 

“And when we were talking about it Trixie said that when he would hold her in his wings in hell, she would wish that he would be able to take care of her forever and that she would never have to leave him.” She looked apologetically at Dan as he tensed and set his jaw. 

Dan forced himself to hold his temper. He knew that Lucifer had been protecting her and it was only natural for her to feel that way under the circumstances, but it just dug the nail in a little deeper, and made it more and more clear that Lucifer really was replacing him. And he couldn’t really blame either of them. All Lucifer had tried to do was keep her safe and happy. It was obvious he wasn’t at all comfortable with the whole ‘dad’ role, so it wasn’t intentional on his part, but what had Dan ever done? He had a decade of broken promises, missed events, constant excuses. Sure his job was demanding, but Chloe made it work. Deep down he knew that he should have tried harder. Done more. And now it seemed to be too late. That final thought made him slump in defeat. He had no right to be angry. He’d blown it and only had himself to blame. He got up and walked out to the balcony. He just needed to get some air right now. 

Chloe looked after him worriedly, but Lucifer just kissed her temple and gave her a squeeze before he let her go and said, “Go ahead.”

She gave him a grateful look and pressed a quick soft kiss to his lips before getting up and heading outside. Right about that time, Trixie’s bedroom door opened and Charlie came toddling out, having just woken up from his nap, but it closed right behind him, so apparently Trixie had no intention of coming out yet. Linda scooped him up and gave Amenadiel a look. “We should go. It seems you have some things to handle,” she said with a smile. 

Amenadiel agreed with her and had just been waiting for a polite moment to make their escape. “Yes. I hope you will let me know anything new you discover?”

Lucifer nodded. “Of course, brother. Thanks for the help.” He wouldn’t admit it out loud, but they all knew that Linda and Amenadiel had been here more for moral support than anything else. 

“Yeah, I should go too,” Ella said as she started to get up, but Lucifer stopped her as the elevator door closed behind the others. 

“Not yet, Ms…Ella. There is something else I wanted to discuss with you,” he told her. He went on to explain the experiment he hoped to run with her permission. 

“So you want me to sleep with you for a few weeks?!” she asked incredulously. “And Chloe agreed?” 

“Just sleep, Ms. Lopez. I made certain promises to the detective and would never dream of breaking them, I assure you.”

She calmed slightly at that assurance. Lucifer didn’t lie and he didn’t break promises, so she didn’t have any more worries there, so she actually considered it. “And other than potentially annoying God, which I don’t give a crap about anymore, the only risk is that I’ll actually become an angel?” 

“Well it’s a little more than just ‘annoying’ him. He could decide at any moment that you shouldn’t exist and kill you, though I do think that is unlikely,” he told her. 

“But you would try to protect me from that though, right?” she asked. 

“I would do whatever I could as long as it didn’t involve the same fate befalling the detective or her child. I do apologize but they are a higher priority. Regardless, though, no one can truly stand against my father if he decides to act. Not even me.” 

“No, obviously they are your priority. Nothing to apologize for. That’s how it should be. The way I see it, from what I understand, he could just as easily decide to do the same thing just because I know the truth, so why not stick it to him in the process,” she said with a smirk. It had been very obvious due to their past discussions that humans weren’t supposed to know the truth about all this anyway, so if he decided to step in she was damned if she did and damned if she didn’t. 

Lucifer nodded. That was how he saw it too. “Very well. We will discuss details with the detective once the rest of this situation is handled,” he promised. 

“Just out of curiosity…I mean, I know it would be a lot more awkward…but do you think Dan should have the opportunity to do this first? I mean, Trixie is his daughter and all…”

Lucifer shook his head. “You actually expect me to wrap detective douche in my wings as we sleep in the same bed? Not a chance. I tolerate him for the sake of my wife and her child, but I don’t like him and never have. As such, even if I were willing, it would never work. My revulsion would prevent it regardless of anything else. Besides which, he would never agree to it for the same reasons. Not even for his daughter’s sake.”

“Fair enough. I get it. It just had to be said, is all,” Ella told him, not disagreeing with anything he said and grinning at what he hadn’t said. That he did care about her enough that it was possible for his…divinity, she thought they called it, to reach out to her. 

About that time, Trixie stuck her head out of her room and looked around. When she didn’t see Dan she asked, “Did my dad leave?” 

Lucifer shook his head. “No. He’s outside talking to your mother.” 

“Oh. Okay,” she said pulling her head back in her room to close the door. 

“Wait,” Lucifer called before she did. “Come here, urchin. I wish to speak with you about something.”

Trixie hesitated for a minute before nodding and coming out, sitting down next to Lucifer. Ella looked around for a minute before making a decision. He’d asked her not to leave, but that didn’t mean she had to be here for what was obviously a family conversation. “I’m gonna go clean up the lunch mess and wash the dishes.”

“You don’t have to do that,” Lucifer told her. 

“I know. I want to,” Ella said and Lucifer realized that he was attempting to give them the illusion of privacy so simply nodded. She would still be in the same room and likely hear everything that was said, but it was the principle of the thing. 

Once that was settled, Lucifer turned to Trixie. “I understand what your father said, hurt you.” Trixie nodded and glared at the window. “You know I don’t like your father for reasons that have nothing to do with you or your mother, but he /is/ your father. You know something of my relationship with my father, yes?” he told her. 

“Yeah. He was really mean to you too,” Trixie said. 

“Yes. He was…mean…but, he never felt badly for it and he never attempted to apologize. Even I can see that your father is sorry,” Lucifer told her. 

“So you think I should just forgive him?” she asked crossing her arms petulantly. 

“I didn’t say that. That’s your choice. But as someone who wishes my father ever bothered to try, I am…suggesting…that you at least hear him out.” 

Trixie sighed and nodded. “Okay. I guess I can do that,” she agreed before giving Lucifer a big hug. “I’m sorry your dad never tried. He should have. Then he would see how great you are.” 

Lucifer swallowed around the lump in his throat as he patted her back. “Yes. Well. Things are what they are.” 

Trixie nodded against his side before getting up and going back to her room, this time leaving her door cracked. If her dad wanted to talk to her when he came back, then she would let him. But she wasn’t going to forgive him so easily. 

Ella smiled brightly as she washed the dishes. Lucifer may claim that he doesn’t like kids and shy away from any attempt to make him into a father figure, but he was definitely good at it. Once Trixie was back to her room, Lucifer came over and started drying the dishes she had already washed and they finished in no time.


	37. Chapter 37

Chloe stepped out onto the balcony and had to look around for Dan for a minute, not knowing him as well as she did Lucifer. She found him sitting on the ground in the corner, looking at his shoes with his hands in his hair. She sighed sadly and went over and sat on the ground across from him. “I’m sorry. You know none of us are trying to hurt you. It’s just going to take a little adjustment with this new dynamic.”

Dan shook his head. “No. I don’t think it’s that. You heard her. She thinks he’s a better dad than I am, and you know what? She’s right.”

“Dan…” she said wearily. 

“No, Chloe. You know it as well as I do. I’ve never been there for her the way I should have. I always used the excuse of the job, but you have the same job and you made it work. She’s old enough now that she’s realizing that, and I don’t have anyone to blame but myself.”

“That doesn’t mean she doesn’t still need you, Dan,” Chloe told him. “You’re still her father.”

“Maybe. But she’s right that Lucifer is better at it. Hell, he doesn’t even like kids and looks completely terrified every time the subject is brought up, but he’s still better at it. I mean, god Chlo. Can you ever see me taking a month off work just to be near her because she was scared? Can you see me giving up everything else in my life for it? He protected her in a way I never could have in hell. Even without considering his powers. It never would have dawned on me to sing to her to drown out the screams. I never considered the idea that she might want to learn an instrument or anything. Hell, I barely know her at all, but he…every girl should have a dad like him, and I get it now.”

Chloe couldn’t honestly argue with anything he’d said, but she didn’t like her forming suspicions of what he was planning to do about it. “So I guess the question now is whether you’re going to suck it up, make it up to her, and be better or if you’re just going to walk away, and let me tell you now, Dan. If you walk out that door, you better never come back.” 

Dan sighed. “That’s what I was thinking about. Not about leaving I mean, but about figuring out where we go from here. I think there’s only one good option here. Trying to make this into a competition wouldn’t be good for any of us, especially her, and I would probably lose anyway, and I don’t want to just walk away from her. She’s my daughter and she always will be. Angel or not.”

“Then what are you going to do, Dan?” Chloe asked him. 

“I’m going to go talk to her. Tell her I understand why she feels that way. Apologize for not being the best dad. Tell her I support her relationship with Lucifer no matter what she wants there. That she will always be my daughter and I will always love her, and that I will be as much or as little a part of her life as she wants me to be.”

“And if she’s still upset enough to say that she never wants to see you again?” Chloe asked dangerously. 

“Then I will tell her I understand, and I probably deserve that, but that if she ever changes her mind she can call me,” he told her and held up a hand to stop her before she exploded. “She’s old enough now to make her own choice here, and I understand that I’ve brought all this down on myself. She has every right to hate me and I don’t want to force her to pretend otherwise. That wouldn’t be good for her either. I screwed up and now I need to take my punishment like a man,” he argued. 

Chloe sighed but nodded. He was right. She didn’t like the idea of him being willing to walk out like that, but when he put it that way…she couldn’t exactly argue with him. Still, “If she does call you…”

“I will be there.” 

Chloe nodded and got up. “Then I think you have a conversation to have.” She held out a hand to help him up. He took it and pulled himself to his feet before heading in and knocking on Trixie’s door, feeling encouraged that it wasn’t closed anymore. 

When Dan was apparently let into Trixie’s room, Chloe turned to Ella and Lucifer who were just finishing the dishes. Before anyone could say anything, Ella dragged Chloe away for some ‘girl talk’ including what happened out there, the idea of her sharing a bed with Lucifer, the changes she was going through, and the conversation that she had overheard between Trixie and Lucifer. 

Lucifer chuckled at Ella’s near constant exuberance, and didn’t begrudge them their ‘girl time’ in the slightest. He just went over to the piano and began to play. It was about half an hour before Dan came out of Trixie’s room and nodded sadly at Chloe before leaving. Lucifer didn’t even notice since his back was to them and he was lost in the music. 

He did notice when Trixie climbed on the bench next to him and asked, “Can I play with you?” 

He tilted his head at her as he stopped playing. “What would you like to play?” 

“I don’t know. Just to play,” she said with a shrug. 

“Can you follow a key yet?” he asked. Usually when they played together he let her play one of the simple songs while he just played around it. 

“I know all the keys, so I think so,” she said. “What key were you playing in?” She knew the notes but her ear wasn’t practiced enough to pick it out that way yet. 

“E minor,” he told her. 

She nodded. “I know that one,” she assured him, so he just shrugged and went back to playing and after a moment she joined him. It was slow and hesitant at first, but eventually she started gaining confidence and just fell into the music. 

It took a few moments for Lucifer to notice the change and he trailed off in his playing looking at her in shock. After a few seconds she realized that he stopped and she did too. “Why’d you stop?” she asked. “Did I mess up?” 

“Hardly, child. Where did you learn to play like that? You were struggling with much more simple songs a few days ago.” She wasn’t playing at master level like him yet, obviously, but he would say she was about halfway there if that was any indication. She was still sloppy and unpracticed but the potential was enormous. 

She shrugged. “I don’t know. I just felt it so I played it,” she said. “I mostly only struggle because it’s hard to focus on the notes on the page and play at the same time.”

Lucifer tilted his head to look at her curiously for a long moment before he said, “I want to try something. I’m going to start to play. Key of…F. You don’t think. Just close your eyes and play. Okay?” 

Chloe watched and listened curiously, wondering what was going on but not wanting to interrupt. Ella had left a little while earlier, having things she needed to get done this afternoon, and having promised Maze that she would bring dinner home tonight, so it was just the three of them again. 

Lucifer began to play an upbeat jazzy tune, waiting for Trixie to join in, and she did. It wasn’t nearly as good as what she had played before, but it was still much better than she should have been able to do. After about ten minutes, Lucifer stopped, prompting her to do the same. “Okay, now let’s try something else. You just play. Whatever you want. Whatever you feel, and I’ll come in after, yeah?” 

She nodded and closed her eyes for a few minutes before reaching for the keys. It started off hesitant and Lucifer could tell that she was having trouble feeling it, but he was patient. He’d been there before. Sometimes it takes a few minutes to fall into it, and he could tell as soon as she did, because the haunting melody took on a more soulful tune and he could almost feel her emotions through the music. So much so that he took longer to join in than he intended, just watching her in awe. 

Chloe was in much the same position. She couldn’t believe it. She wanted to talk about it. Find out if he agreed with her suspicions, but she didn’t want to stop the music. She could feel Trixie’s emotions pouring out of the music too, and besides it being beautiful, she thought this could be good for her. To get it out this way. Just like Lucifer tended to do, so she just sat there and listened. 

It was a good hour before it stopped and she wasn’t sure which of them stopped first, it had been so seamless. Her jaw nearly dropped when she saw Lucifer reach over and pull Trixie into a hug. “That was wonderful, child.”

Trixie grinned, partially due to his praise and partially because he’d never been the one to hug her before. “Thanks, Lucifer. It was so much fun.”

“I do believe we’ve found your divine gift,” he said beaming, turning to look at Chloe who just nodded with tears in her eyes.

“You mean the piano?” Trixie asked curiously. “That’s a gift?” 

“Music, Beatrice, is most certainly a gift. I believe you will always play best when you are playing what you feel and…” he looked at Chloe again. “Did you feel it when she was playing?” 

“Yeah. I did. It was almost like I could feel what she was feeling. Is that possible?” she asked. 

“Yes. It is. That’s part of her gift. The music channels her feelings,” Lucifer explained. He hadn’t been completely sure since he could always feel the emotions in music anyway. He had thought this felt a little different, but needed the confirmation.


	38. Chapter 38

Chloe was now more sure than ever that she needed to have a real heart to heart with her daughter, and soon. She knew the conversation would make Lucifer uncomfortable though, especially since part of the conversation would be about him. She got her opportunity though when Lucifer suddenly noticed the time and realized they had been playing for hours, so he went to start dinner. 

Chloe motioned Trixie to go in her room, and she followed behind and closed the door all the way before she asked, “So what did you and your dad talk about?”

“I don’t have a dad anymore,” Trixie said clenching her jaw and looking past her mother at a spot on the wall in avoidance. 

“I know you’re mad, Monkey, but…”

“It’s not just that I’m mad, Mom. Really. I know how you guys always fought, usually over me. I paid more attention than you think. He never cared. Not really. Everything else was always more important to him. I know that even the few times he was there, it was because you yelled him and told him that he had to.”

“Oh, honey. He does love you, he just isn’t very good at multi-tasking,” Chloe told her. 

“I know he loves me, but that’s not enough. I want him to put me first and he never has. I always thought it was just a dad thing, but I’ve been noticing more and more how my friend’s dads aren’t like that. And then…there’s Lucifer. You remember when I snuck out before Dad could come get me and came over here?” 

Chloe wanted to argue more on that point but decided to let her daughter drive the conversation. They could always come back to it later. “I remember. And you almost died.” 

“Yeah, but that wasn’t Lucifer’s fault. He saved me and protected me, and it was all Dad’s fault,” she said. 

“How was that your father’s fault?” Chloe asked shocked that she would think that. 

“I heard one of the men tell Lucifer just before you got there that Dad had told their boss that Lucifer did something bad and that’s why they came to hurt him,” Trixie told her. 

Chloe gasped. “I…I didn’t know that. Lucifer never told me.” 

Trixie shrugged. “He probably didn’t think it mattered. Or thought you already knew. I don’t know. I thought you knew.” 

“I didn’t,” Chloe told her. “So you blame your dad for putting you in danger that Lucifer saved you from then?” Things were starting to make more sense now. Trixie nodded and Chloe saw that there wasn’t going to be any more on that point so she backtracked to where they veered off. “I think you were about to tell me why you ran over to Lucifer’s in the first place though.”

“Yeah. I mean, everything I told you before was true. I came here because you said he was going through something and he needed a friend and if you couldn’t help him, then I was going to, and that’s really why I came. But I knew Dad was coming to get me and I didn’t care, because I knew that he wouldn’t…well not until I was in danger anyway…but I knew that Lucifer would never send me away and he didn’t. He acted like he didn’t want me here, but you know how his eyes tell the truth, and he never even tried to get me to leave, though he did keep telling me not to touch things or jump on the furniture,” she giggled. 

Chloe couldn’t help but laugh at that too. She could just imagine how well that had gone over with Lucifer. Especially at that time of his life with everything else he was dealing with. “So you felt welcome here, but you didn’t with your dad?” she got back to the root of the issue. 

Trixie nodded. “Yeah. Even when I go with dad, he doesn’t pay much attention to me. He just puts me in front of the tv or something or if we go somewhere like the arcade he just tells me to go play and stands around talking to adults. Lucifer doesn’t do that though. Even then. He stayed right there…well until me and Eve started girl talk and then he left the room, but it was only for a minute before those guys came in.”

Chloe nodded and let her talk. “I understand how you feel, Monkey, but maybe if you talked to your dad…”

“Why? I want him to want me for me not because someone told him to,” she said, crossing her arms. 

“I know, but sometimes we just don’t realize how it makes people feel when we do things like that. You know I’ve put you in front of the tv before and talked to the other parents while you play.”

“Yeah, but you pay attention to me at other times too. He doesn’t,” Chloe told her. “Lucifer pays attention to me too. When I talk he actually listens to what I say, even when I’m being annoying and talking too much. He pays attention to what I like, like when he got me piano lessons because he noticed that I wanted to play. When I asked him to teach me, he actually told me why he wouldn’t instead of just saying no. He asks me what I want to do. He even got me this pretty necklace just because and remembered that purple was my favorite color and that I like butterflies.”

“Lucifer is a good man, but you have to know that you can have room in your life for both of them,” Chloe told her. She loved that Lucifer had made such an impression on her, and that they had such a good relationship, but she felt like Trixie still needed her father in her life, at least to some degree. 

“I know. But I’m not ready to forgive him yet. Not this time. I always forgive him and then he just does it again. You always forgive him too. Lucifer says that people need to be punished if they are ever going to learn their lesson, so this is his punishment. Maybe, when I do call him, he’ll know better than to be like that again.”

Chloe opened and closed her mouth a few times before realizing that Trixie was completely right. “Okay, Monkey. That’s fair enough.” 

“I still meant it about Lucifer being a better dad than him though. Even thought he doesn’t want to be…I think I scared him when I said that,” she said sheepishly. 

Chloe couldn’t help but chuckle, remembering the look on Lucifer’s face. “Yeah. I think you did. But you have to realize that the way he feels about that isn’t because he doesn’t love you or want you. His dad was a really bad dad. A lot worse than yours. So when he thinks of a dad, that’s what he remembers and deep down he’s scared that being a dad will mean that he’ll turn into his dad.”

“That’s silly. He could never be that mean. Even when he tries,” Trixie said matter-of-factly. 

“I know that, and you know that, and I think even part of him knows that, but sometimes those feelings and fears go so deep that no matter how silly we know they are they are still there.”

“So you think he does want me to be like his daughter?” Trixie asked. 

“You know that with Lucifer, actions speak louder than words. What do you think?” Chloe asked her. 

“I think he does,” Trixie said with a smile. “Do you think it would help him if I started calling him dad? You always say we should face our fears and stuff, so maybe…” she trailed off feeling more than a little insecure. 

Chloe considered for a moment how to best handle this one. She knew that Lucifer wouldn’t be comfortable talking about it, but this wasn’t something that should just be sprung on him. “Why don’t you let me talk to him about that, and I’ll let you know okay?” She knew that letting Trixie talk to him wouldn’t be good. He wouldn’t deny her anything even if it sent him into an emotional tailspin and she knew that it would if it wasn’t handled very delicately. She just hoped that she was up to the task. She considered mentioning it to Linda to see if she could help him with it, but decided against it. At least, not yet. She got the feeling that he tended to open up far more to him than he did with her, though she was good at figuring out the problems and getting him to think about them, but he talked more to her than he did with Linda. Maybe a family session or two would be a good thing if she couldn’t get this resolved on her own. And maybe even if she did. She doubted it could hurt. 

“Okay, Mom. I won’t say anything until you tell me,” Trixie promised. 

They were interrupted by a knock on the door, and Chloe went over to open it. “Dinner’s ready, but if you two need more time…” Lucifer told them. 

Chloe looked back at Trixie. “Do we need more time?” she asked. 

Trixie was already walking over to the door. “No. We’re good. Thanks,” she said to both of them. Her mom for the talk that helped her figure out her feelings and Lucifer both for understanding that they needed that and for the dinner.


	39. Chapter 39

They had a nice dinner with casual conversation, during which, Lucifer suggested that Trixie start listening to songs and then playing them. He told her they didn’t have to be exact. In fact, they shouldn’t be. She should find her own arrangements. She still didn’t seem to understand what he meant so after dinner he gave a demonstration. He turned on the song The Unforgiven by Metallica on the radio, and then when it was over he sat down to play his version on the piano. 

“So…it’s like the melody and key and everything stays the same, but you build other stuff around it?” she asked. 

“Essentially yes,” Lucifer told her. “You can play around with the melody and key too if you wish, but that can wait until you have a better handle on the theory behind it.” 

“Okay. I’ll try that,” she said beaming. She figured it would be harder than just playing what came to mind, but it was something to work for. “Can I start now?” 

Lucifer nodded and waved his hand towards the piano. “Be my guest,” he told her as he went to sit down next to Chloe on the couch. 

Chloe smiled and curled up to his side and his fingers started to card through her hair and he asked, “I never got a chance to see how you were after all the drama earlier.”

She snuggled closer to him as she replied, “I’m okay. I’m sorry I lost my temper,” she told him. 

“All is forgiven, detective,” he told her easily. “You’re hardly the only one who suffers from that affliction from time to time.” He suppressed his wince at remembering when he did the same last night. 

“I know. But it still needed to be said.” 

As they were talking Trixie was struggling with the song she was trying to play, and finally she stopped and huffed. “Lucifer, can you help me start it? Just with the beginning,” she asked. 

He got up and said, “I suppose if I must, wretch,” though his tone, smile, and eyes betrayed the words. He walked over and leaned over behind her, placing his hands on the keys. “Are you watching?” he asked and she nodded, so he began to play the opening only doing the first few bars. 

When he stood back up, she tried it herself and got it mostly right, but knew she could correct it herself now that she had a starting point. “Thanks, Lucifer,” she beamed up at him. He nodded to her and returned to the couch. 

“I’m glad she found her gift, and I’m glad it’s music. It suits her,” Chloe told him as she returned to her previous position. 

“Yes, it does seem to, doesn’t it,” Lucifer agreed. He would never admit that he was glad that there was something that he could do with her that made him comfortable. He hadn’t missed the way that both Chloe and Trixie looked at him when he did, and he liked how that made him feel. 

“I think I’m going to take her to her piano lesson on Monday morning. I’d like to talk to her teacher,” Lucifer told her. 

“That’s fine. I have a lot of paperwork to catch up on anyway, but I’ll call you and let you know where to meet me if we end up with a crime scene,” she told him. He usually ended up milling around the precinct irritating people or talking with Ella while she did paperwork anyway. He’d never been around as much before, but she knew was still getting back into the swing of things, making up for lost time. Kind of like a honeymoon period. She had noticed him getting more antsy before yesterday, so she figured it wouldn’t be long before they were back to the way things were with him just showing up for the interesting parts. 

Trixie kept going until Chloe made her stop for bedtime, and she wasn’t very good at the song yet, but she was getting there. Lucifer’s winces were coming every few minutes instead of every few seconds by the end. 

Once Trixie was in bed, Chloe brought up the conversation that they needed to have, but knew he would feel better outside during it, so she asked if he wanted to go out and get some air. Once they were out there, she joined him in looking over the city for a while, just enjoying the night before she brought it up. “Trixie and I had a very enlightening talk this evening,” she started. 

“Oh?” he asked, waiting for more. 

“Yes. She brought up the idea of calling you Dad,” she told him, not sure how to break it gently, and needing to get it out in the open so they could talk about it. 

Lucifer froze as the words came out of her mouth, before he sighed and reached into his pocket for his cigarettes and lit one. There was a long pause before he spoke and she was just giving him time to collect his thoughts. “Just because she’s mad at her father doesn’t mean she has to have a replacement,” he said bitterly. 

“That’s not what it is, Lucifer and if it were I would have just told her no and never brought it up. We talked for a long time and I made sure that she wanted this for the right reasons. Her father has nothing to do with it.”

“And what are the right reasons?” he scoffed.

“Because she loves you, mostly. You listen to her and pay attention to her. You show you care about her with everything you do. Specifically she mentioned how you got her piano lessons because you noticed that she enjoyed playing and wanted to learn more. How you got her a necklace just because and remembered that her favorite color was purple and she liked butterflies. You ask her what she wants to do rather than just making plans without consulting her. You talk to her when she’s upset and help her feel better, give her good…and sometimes bad advice,” she chuckled, happy to see how Lucifer’s lips twitched at that. “She feels safe and loved with you.”

“Very well. She may call me what she wishes,” Lucifer said in defeat. 

Chloe shook her head. This is what she was afraid of and why she wanted to have this conversation instead of Trixie. “This isn’t just about what she wants Lucifer. What do /you/ want?” 

“It doesn’t matter what I want, detective. If I say no then she will feel rejected and hurt, and that is not acceptable,” Lucifer said, tossing his finished cigarette, taking another swig from his glass of whiskey, and lighting another cigarette. 

“It does matter what you want, Lucifer,” she told him. “While I love how much you think of her feelings, if you say no she will understand.” 

“Will she?” he scoffed. “You forget that I know what it’s like to be rejected by someone you think of as a father. It’s not something that you get over.”

“She will, because you’re not rejecting /her/. You will still be part of her life either way. I’m sure you’ll still do all those things that she loves, because that’s just part of who you are. It’s a completely different situation to what happened to you.” She gave it a moment for that to sink in before she said, “Please talk to me Lucifer. Tell me how you feel about this. What you think, what you want.” 

“I want you and the urchin to be happy,” Lucifer said simply. 

“And we are, Lucifer. Happier than we’ve ever been. But we need you to be happy too. You don’t have to give up your happiness for ours. You and I, we need to be a partnership. We need to be able to find solutions that make us both happy.”

Lucifer huffed. “Doctor Linda said something similar a few weeks ago,” Lucifer admitted. “But I don’t…don’t know how.”

“You start by talking to me. Help me to understand where your head is,” she told him. 

“She’s going to get her father back in her life eventually. She won’t stay mad forever,” Lucifer told her. 

“You’re right about that, but when she does, even if he’s better than he has been so far, it doesn’t change how she feels about you. It couldn’t. She’s far from the first kid to have more than one dad,” she assured him, realizing that he was as worried about his own rejection as he was hers, and the fact that he was willing to risk it himself to keep her from it. 

“I don’t know how to be a dad, Chloe,” he said, voice heavy with emotion as he tossed another finished cigarette and tossed back the rest of his whiskey before grabbing the bottle he kept out here and refilling it. “I…I’ll mess it up…just like…” he trailed off. 

She leaned her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arm around him. “You’ll make mistakes, yes. Everyone does. But you could never be like him. You don’t have it in you. Everything you’ve done with her, for her, so far…that’s what being a dad is, and you’re doing a wonderful job already,” she assured him. 

“That’s easy everyday stuff. Even I know there’s more to being a dad than that,” he pointed out. 

“Not really. I mean, yeah there are other situations that come up, big issues that need to be settled, stuff like that, but those are handled the same way the everyday stuff is. By talking, understanding, and paying attention. Once you have that down, everything else falls into place and you do have that part down.”

“I…I’m scared, Chloe,” he finally admitted. “I’m scared I can’t do this and that I’ll hurt you both.”

“If you’re not ready, then that’s okay. You don’t have to be, but don’t let fear stop you. It’s okay to be afraid, Lucifer. When you can accept that, then you can face your fears and stop letting them control you.” She paused for a minute as he thought that over. “Can I tell you a secret?” she whispered. 

He turned to look at her with a half-smile. “Always, darling.”

“I’m scared too,” she told him and he looked surprised. “Being a mom is just as scary as being a dad and that never goes away. Always wondering if you’re doing the right thing, saying the right thing, if this is going to be the day that she hates you for ten years from now…all you can do is your best and hope that’s enough.” 

Lucifer relaxed a great deal at that admission and got lost in thought for a long time and she just stood there with him, looking over the city, and letting everything settle. It was about half an hour before Lucifer spoke again. “You do realize that I still despise children, though I will admit that she is the exception to that, but the only one.” 

Chloe chuckled. “I know, Lucifer. She’s the only one I care about.” 

“I just don’t want you to think that…in the future we could…”

“Lucifer, look at me,” she said seriously and waited until he did before continuing. “I’m not going to say that I’m never, through all of eternity, going to want more children. That’s too long to say anything with certainty. I can say that I don’t now. I understand your feelings about children, and I respect them. Maybe someday we’ll both change our minds on that, maybe not, but that’s not something that I will ever try to talk you into. It would only be if we both want it.”

Lucifer let out a sigh of relief and then nodded. Part of him had been worried that was seeing this as practice or training of some sort for their own children. “Okay. The spawn can call me whatever she wants to call me.”

“And you’re really okay with it, this time? Not just saying it for her sake?” Chloe asked. 

“I don’t know that I will ever be fully comfortable with the idea. As you said, even you are scared, but I can live with that,” he told her honestly. 

She looked at him searchingly for a long while, trying to see if he was agreeing for the right reasons, and when she found what she was looking for, she smiled brightly and kissed him softly.


	40. Chapter 40

Lucifer’s sleep was rather restless that night, which led to him sleeping later than usual, giving Chloe and Trixie time to talk. Trixie beamed when her mother told her that she could start calling Lucifer dad, but warned her that he would probably be a little uncomfortable with it at first. “Because he’s scared?” Trixie asked, remember what her mother had said last night. 

Chloe nodded. “All parents are scared, but we get used to that over time. He just needs time to get used to that too.” 

“You are?” she asked. “Why?” 

“Scared that something is going to happen to you. Scared that I’m going to say or do something that hurts you without realizing it or when I get upset. Lots of things are scary about being a parent, but I’ve had twelve years to learn how to deal with the fear.”

Trixie nodded solemnly. “But he hasn’t. I get it,” she assured her. “Why do you have kids if it’s so scary then?” she asked. 

Chloe suddenly found herself wondering when her daughter had grown up so much, as she answered. “Because it’s also worth it. At least to most people. No matter how scary it is, loving you makes it all worth it.” 

“So are you and Lucifer going to have more kids then?” she asked, unfortunately just as Lucifer came out and he froze and choked. 

Chloe resisted the urge to laugh. Barely. “No, Monkey. We already have the best one, so there’s no point having any more.”

“Lucifer!” Trixie cried at seeing him, running over and hugging him tightly. “Mom said it’s okay if I start calling you Dad. Is it really okay?” 

“Yes, urchin. If you truly wish to have someone like me as your father, I have no objections,” he told her, patting her back as she hugged him. 

“Thanks, Dad. You’re the best,” she said happily before letting him go and skipping off to her room, having noticed how he froze at her words, but not worrying about it. 

Chloe looked at him amused. “You okay there?” she asked, fighting a chuckle. 

He took a deep breath and relaxed before nodded. “It’s just going to take some getting used to,” he told her. 

“I know,” she said getting up to kiss him. “But you’re sure you’re really okay with it?” she asked seriously, now that it was more than just theory. 

“I will be, dearest,” he promised her. 

Most of the day was spent playing board games at Trixie’s request, but around mid-afternoon, when she heard the faint sounds from the club, she considered something and turned to Lucifer. “You know you don’t have to stay here with us all the time right? Just because we’re together now doesn’t mean you can’t go downstairs and play. There’s only one kind of playing that you’re restricted from,” she finished with a chuckle. 

Lucifer huffed a laugh. “Are you sure you won’t mind?” he asked. He’d assumed that when he got into a committed relationship…a normal one anyway, Eve didn’t really count…that his party days were over. Not that it wasn’t worth it. She was worth everything, but if he really could have both…

She was familiar enough with him by now to know what he was asking and what he was thinking, so she was able to answer the question he meant rather than the one he said. “I don’t expect you to change who you are Lucifer, and you don’t have to give up everything just because we’re a family now. Spending every night partying would be a bad thing, but a night or two a week is different. Besides, you own the club, I know Maze has been killing herself trying to run it along with everything else she has going on so she would probably appreciate a little more help during the day when you’re not busy on cases too.” Lucifer grinned and pulled her into a searing kiss. When it broke, she looked at him lovingly and brushed her hand over his cheek. “This is part of what I mean when I say to talk to me, sweetheart. It didn’t even dawn on me until just now that you might be missing some of that freedom. If you want something, then tell me and we can work it out.” 

Lucifer nodded and pulled her close, resting his face in her hair. “I am so blessed to have you, my love,” he whispered. 

“Just as I am to have you,” she replied snuggling against him for a moment before pulling away and slapping him on the ass. “Now go have some fun,” she finished with a laugh. 

“Yes ma’am,” he gave a playful salute and headed for the elevator, passing a giggling Trixie on the way. 

Once he was gone and the board games were cleaned up, Trixie went to the piano to play for a little while, so Chloe curled up with a book to while away the evening.

Lucifer went downstairs and immediately went for the bar, downing a few shots and snorting a line of coke, before hitting the dance floor. He assumed that Chloe would understand that dancing was part of having fun in a club, but he did make sure not to cross the line in how suggestive his dances were. Over the course of the night, he’d danced with about a dozen people individually, no one more than once, danced as part of a group for a good bit, played and sang a few songs, done enough drugs and drank enough to kill a human, but barely affected him at all, and he headed back upstairs around three am feeling more relaxed and free than he had since he left for hell. It wasn’t that he didn’t love Chloe and even the child, and he loved spending time with them, but it was nice to be able to cut loose sometimes and destress. 

When he got upstairs, he found Chloe already in bed and hoped that she wouldn’t be mad at him in the morning. He climbed into bed as quietly as he could after stripping down to his underwear, and managed to avoid waking her up. When she curled against his side, he smiled and wrapped his wings around them both as he passed out. 

The next morning, Chloe, as usual, had to wake him up to get out of his wings, but this time she asked in a whisper, “Were you still planning to take Trix to her piano lesson this morning or do you need to sleep some more?” 

Lucifer groaned and shook himself awake. “I’m good. I’m up,” he said, climbing out of bed. 

“You can take the shower first. You smell like a perfume store threw up on you,” she laughed. 

Lucifer shrugged sheepishly. “There was a lot of dancing, but only dancing…”

“I know, Lucifer,” she said with conviction as she stood on her toes to kiss him. “I trust you. You made a promise and I know you don’t break promises. You forget how many times I’ve been to Lux. I know what it’s like down there.” 

“So…you’re really okay?” he asked, wanting to be absolutely sure. 

“I’m really okay, sweetheart. I’m just sorry I didn’t realize what you needed before. I never intended for you to change for me. Adjustment is necessary, changing isn’t.”

“What’s the difference,” Lucifer asked confused. 

“Adjusting is realizing that there are other people in your life that have to be considered along with you, not instead of you. Things like putting a lock on the elevator, taking Trixie to her piano lessons, spending time with us, not having wild drug filled parties up here, that’s adjusting. Changing is giving up everything you are and focusing only on us. You need your own life too and sometimes it just takes time to figure out how your life, my life, and our combined life fit together.”

He nodded, not completely understanding, but turning it over in his head as he went to take a shower. He thought he had a pretty good handle on it by the time he came out, and smiled when he noticed breakfast hitting the table. He hesitated a moment before taking another step and just placing a hand on Trixie’s head as he walked by to his spot on the table. He figured he did a good thing when she beamed up at him through sleepy eyes. He was figuring out this whole affection thing. 

Over breakfast, he used his newfound understanding, he hoped, to make a decision. “So I was thinking, unless you end up getting a case that I can help on, I’d spend a few hours downstairs today checking over the books and stuff.”

Chloe grinned and nodded. “That sounds good. I’ll just let you know if we get a case?” 

“And I’ll be there with bells on, darling,” he drawled. 

“You’re still taking me to my piano lesson this morning, right Dad?” Trixie asked, noticing him falter a bit at the title, but he recovered much quicker than yesterday. 

“I was planning on it, yes,” he told her as Chloe got up to take her turn in the shower.


	41. Chapter 41

They all left around the same time, Chloe to work and Lucifer and Trixie to her piano lesson. Once they got to the lesson, Lucifer took a moment to speak to the teacher. “We discovered something a couple days ago that I’d like to show you,” he told her. When she nodded he motioned Trixie to the piano. “Just like the other night. Just play.” 

Trixie started much like she had then. Nervous and unsure and not very good, and the teacher was looking confused at what he wanted her to see, or hear as the case may be. “Just give her a minute to get out of her own way. She’s nervous.” The teacher shrugged and waited. If he wanted to pay her for this it was his dime. Five minutes later though, she started to see what he meant as the most beautiful music was coming from the piano. Music that someone might play after a decade of lessons. 

Once Lucifer saw that she got it, he explained. “I asked her how it was that she struggled so much with far simpler songs and she told me that trying to read the notes and play them like that was too distracting.”

The teacher nodded. “She’s an intuitive player. They’re rare. Very rare. In the four decades I’ve been doing this she’s only my second, which is why I didn’t notice the problem.”

“Yes. So you see, I’m not really sure what more she can gain from the lessons,” he told her. 

“I agree that she doesn’t need intensive lessons like we’ve been doing, but reading music is still a good skill, that we can practice,” she told him. 

Lucifer considered it for a moment before nodding. “For today that will work, and we can talk about what she wants to do later. I don’t read music myself so I don’t think it’s strictly necessary, but I can see where it could be useful.”

“I can also teach her tips and techniques that can’t be picked up instinctively, but that shouldn’t take more than a few lessons if that’s all we focus on,” she told him. She understood why he was hesitant about more lessons and he was right that she could be great without them, but talent like this needed to be nurtured and with just that little nudge she could go from great to remarkable. 

“Very well. We shall do that then,” Lucifer said with a nod. “We can keep the same schedule for the moment, and I’ll call this evening if we are going to make any changes.” 

She nodded, so Lucifer went over to stop Trixie playing and let her know that he’d be back at the end of her lesson. He went over and put a hand on her shoulder and she jumped and spun around, eyes wide, before saying, “Sorry, Dad. I got a little lost.”

Lucifer smiled fondly at her. “Never apologize for making beautiful music, urchin. I simply wanted to let you know that I would be back before the end of your lesson. I’m going to run some errands.” 

“Okay. Thanks,” she said smiling brightly as her teacher sat down next to her, and he left, going to browse at the music store while he had time to kill. He got back just as the lesson was finishing up and Trixie immediately asked if they could stop for ice cream on the way home. 

“Let me just call your mother and make sure she doesn’t need me for a case, first,” he told her. When Chloe assured him that she was still just doing paperwork, he stopped by the ice cream shop around the corner from Lux and they went inside to eat. Lucifer was soon amazed. He’d never seen a child eat so much ice cream and she still kept asking for more. 

Once they got home, Lucifer led her into the club to find Maze since she was supposed to be watching her today. They had told her that Lucifer was taking care of the piano lesson, but they had taken longer for ice cream than he had expected due to how much she ate, so he assumed Maze would be downstairs, having gotten sick of waiting, and he was right. 

“Can I stay down here with you, please?” Trixie asked hopefully. 

Lucifer looked at Maze and before looking back at her and shrugging. “If you can refrain from getting in the way, and not do anything that I would be in trouble with your mother for, I suppose you can stay until we open,” he told her. 

She smiled brightly and promised to be good. She didn’t get to be in here much and it was so cool. “Can I play?” she asked looking at the piano and he nodded so she ran over and spent the next hour pretending she was playing for a crowd as Lucifer sat at the bar and looked over the books, glass of whiskey ever-present in his hand. 

It was only about an hour before Trixie came over. “Dad?” she said weakly and he looked up to see her swaying on her feet. “I don’t feel so good.” 

Lucifer frowned concerned and reached out a hand to her forehead. “Are you ill? You shouldn’t be susceptible to human illnesses anymore.” No sooner than he finished speaking, Trixie wretched and threw up all over the front of his suit. 

Maze burst into laughter at the completely horrified look on Lucifer’s face as he sat there frozen as a statue. Trixie suddenly felt a lot better, but quickly noticed what she’d done and her eyes got wide as she looked at her handiwork. “Uh-oh…” she said nervously, remembering how he’d reacted when she got snot on him from crying and this was soooo much worse. 

It was a full minute before Lucifer even twitched and then he closed his eyes, counted to ten, and opened them again, hoping it was a horrible nightmare, and horrified to see that it wasn’t. He opened his mouth and closed it a few times, but no sound came out, until he heard a weak, “Sorry,” from Trixie, who looked like she was waiting for an explosion. 

Lucifer took a few deep breaths before he trusted himself to speak and said, “I do hope that was an accident.” When Trixie nodded emphatically, he said. “Then there is no need to be sorry.” He stood up and very gingerly in an attempt to avoid any of the chunky liquid, managed to strip down to his shorts. 

Maze, still laughing, managed to have a plastic bag handy and held it open for him to put his clothes in. “I’m going to go upstairs and get a new suite. Mazikeen, would you be willing to take that to the dry cleaners for me. I will stay with the child until you get back.”

Maze nodded. “For allowing me to witness this precious gift, I’ll gladly make the trip,” she said amusedly. 

Lucifer chose to ignore her, and just said, “Come, urchin,” as he walked towards the elevator. Once he at least had pants on again, he pulled out his phone, which thankfully escaped unvomited on, and called Chloe. “I believe your offspring is ill,” he told her when she answered. 

“What happened?” she asked worriedly. 

“I’m not sick. I think I just ate too much ice cream,” she admitted sheepishly. 

“How much ice cream did she eat?” Chloe asked Lucifer, hearing Trixie’s response. 

“Four large bowls, three triple scoop cones, and a sundae,” he told her. 

“Lucifer! That much would make her throw up,” Chloe told him worriedly. 

“I’m well aware of that /now/,” he drawled. 

“Uh-oh. What happened?” she asked. 

“Ask the child, while I finish dressing,” he said handing Trixie the phone. 

“Dressing?” Chloe asked amusedly when she heard Trixie on the line, getting a good idea of what happened. 

“I kinda threw up on him,” she said sheepishly, and heard her mother break into laughter. “Auntie Maze laughed a lot too.” 

Chloe forced herself under control. At least mostly. “Sorry baby. It’s not funny that you feel bad. Just picturing Lucifer’s face…”

Trixie couldn’t help but giggle at that. “His face was pretty funny,” she admitted, as Lucifer came back out, fully dressed again and held out his hand for the phone. “Oops. Here he is again,” she said handing the phone back. 

“Are you okay, Lucifer?” Chloe asked, managing not to laugh but she was sure he could hear her amusement. 

“I am…fine,” he said, unsure what word he should use there. “Mazikeen was kind enough to take my suit to the cleaners.” 

“That’s good,” Chloe said. “As far as Trixie goes, you should have her lay down for a few hours and drink some water and she should feel better. And for future reference, no more than one dish of ice cream.” 

“I will definitely remember that in the future,” he assured her. He wasn’t likely to forget this anytime soon. 

“Will you be okay with her until Maze gets back?” Chloe asked. 

“I will be fine. How much worse could it get?” he asked wryly. 

“Okay. I love you,” she felt the need to remind him. 

“And I love you, detective. No matter how often your offspring soils me,” he told her before hanging up, and Chloe felt free to laugh.


	42. Chapter 42

Ella happened to be coming downstairs with a report when she saw Chloe bent over her desk laughing so hard tears were falling from her eyes. “What’s so funny?” she asked curiously. 

“T-trix…Lucifer…throw-up…” she managed to gasp out. 

“Trixie threw up on Lucifer?” Ella guessed and when Chloe managed to nod, Ella burst into laughter too. “Oh what I wouldn’t give to have seen his face,” she said. 

“Maybe…Maze…got pictures,” Chloe asked, desperately hoping she’d done so. 

“I will pay her every penny I have for them if she did,” Ella promised. 

Once he got off the phone with Chloe, he relayed her instructions, and Trixie didn’t dare argue as she grabbed a glass of water and went straight to her bed to lay down. Lucifer stayed upstairs until Maze got back about thirty minutes later when he returned downstairs to continue what he was doing. 

Thankfully the cleaning crew had already taken care of the little bit that had gotten on the floor and the bar by the time he got down there, so he just went back to the books and tried to forget the nightmare ever happened. After a few minutes, he realized that was pointless right now so he went to the piano to destress for a while. He found himself grateful that at least she hadn’t vomited on the piano. That would have required a professional and cleaning and wouldn’t have been able to be done before they opened today. Once he was calmer, he went back to the books and then the inventory, finishing up just as the doors opened. 

He went upstairs to see how Trixie was doing, and Maze, once again, started laughing as soon as she saw him. “I’m glad you’re amused,” he drawled. 

“Amused? Oh no. This is beyond amused. This is hilarious. Priceless. Hysterical.”

“Yes, yes. I get the picture. Has the urchin stopped releasing bodily fluids?”

“She threw up again a little while ago. If I’d had more warning I would have called you,” she told him, still laughing. 

He stuck his nose in the air and decided to ignore her and went to the child’s room. He stood way back in the doorway as he asked, “Are you feeling better, urchin?” 

“Yeah. I’m feeling a lot better now. Auntie Maze made me some toast and soup after I threw up again. I’m really sorry about throwing up on you,” she said sadly. 

“Let’s just pretend it never happened and never mention it again,” he said seriously. 

“Okay. I won’t. Promise,” she told him. 

“Thank you, urchin. Now if only I could get Mazikeen to do the same,” he grumbled the last part. “I’m going to go back downstairs now. I just wanted to make sure you were well.” 

“Thanks Da-Lucifer,” she corrected herself sounding miserable. 

He looked at her confused for a moment before realizing that she thought that he would reject her after what happened. “Nothing has changed with us, urchin,” he told her. “You don’t have to start calling me by my name again unless you wish to.” He could see her face brighten from the other side of the room and she got up to come over and presumably give him a hug but he took a step back and held out a hand. “That, however, can wait until I’m certain this morning’s incident won’t be repeated,” he said, hoping he didn’t hurt her feelings but not wanting to take any chances. 

Trixie just giggled though and nodded laying back down. “Okay, Dad. I understand,” she told him and he smiled at her and nodded, turning to head for the elevator before Maze could start laughing at him again. 

He spent the remainder of the afternoon going back and forth between mingling with the crowd, checking on how things were running, and playing and singing. He hadn’t had much of a chance to check on his club since he’d been back from hell, so he was taking the opportunity now. He had lost track of time somewhat and noticed that it was about time for Chloe to get home, so he headed back upstairs to meet her. 

He came out of the elevator to find Chloe and Maze looking at something on Maze’s phone and giggling and neither of them noticed him so he walked up behind them and leaned over to see what it was before sighing. At the sound, Chloe, who had ahold of the phone, shoved it in her pocket as though to hide it. “You filmed that?” Lucifer asked Maze incredulously. 

“You had mentioned how much ice cream she’d had, so I knew what was coming and when I saw her coming over looking like that, I figured it would be good. I didn’t expect it to actually hit you, or I might have said something. Operative word, might. I figured she’d just blow chunks on the floor and your reaction would have been good enough for that, but instead I struck gold,” she said laughing. 

Chloe tried to hold it in, but couldn’t quite manage. “Et tu, detective?” he asked mostly only pretending to be hurt. 

“I’m sorry, Lucifer. Your face though…” 

“Dad!” Trixie cried running out of her room towards him and he held out a hand and stepped back, looking at her questioningly, as Chloe put her fist in her mouth to keep from laughing again. “I haven’t thrown up since right before lunch, and I promise I feel a hundred percent completely better. Not even a little bit sick.” 

Lucifer nodded and dropped his arm. “Very well. Continue then,” he said, bracing himself for the hug that came a moment later. 

“Dad?” Maze mouthed in shock at Chloe, having missed that earlier with all the hilarity. 

Chloe smiled and nodded and mouthed back “Later,” to let her know they’d talk about it when he wasn’t there. 

“Have you had dinner yet?” he asked them, trying desperately to change the subject. 

“I just ordered some pizza. I wasn’t sure if you were coming up, and wasn’t really in the mood to cook,” Chloe told him. 

“Apologies. I seemed to lose track of time,” he told her with a shrug. 

“It’s okay. You were taking care of your club. That’s important too,” Chloe told him. “I ordered plenty for all of us anyway.” 

“Thank you, darling,” he said leaning down for a kiss before taking his jacket off and hanging it over the back of the chair. 

Maze stayed long enough for dinner before she left, and at Chloe’s prompting took some pizza home for Ella too. Chloe sent Trixie to bed early, since she’d been sick, even if she was better now, and then took Lucifer to bed to apologize appropriately for both what happened and taking such pleasure in it, and they were asleep not long after since Lucifer had only slept about three hours last night and had been going all day. 

The next morning, Lucifer went into the station with Chloe, bringing donuts for everyone, as he tended to do every so often, ignored Ella’s snickering at him, and hung around for about an hour before they got a case. It ended up being one of the more difficult ones though and wasn’t solved that day, despite all the running around, talking to suspects they did, so once they hit a point where there was nothing more they could do for the day, they headed home. It ended up taking three days to solve the case and get the bad guy behind bars. Lucifer had managed a few hours a day at the club to keep everything running smoothly, since Maze had essentially handed it back to him, saying if she was going to be watching Trixie every day, and hunting bounties most of the time, she didn’t have time to do that too. 

Luckily there was a lot of time on cases that didn’t involve going to crime scenes or talking to suspects which gave Lucifer the time he needed. Otherwise he would just have to do it in the evenings after work, like he always had. 

Friday rolled around and Ella came to work with a suitcase that Lucifer went to put in his car, since Ella had apparently taken the bus. “You do know I would have been happy to pick you up, correct?” Lucifer drawled when he was told that. 

“I know. I just didn’t think about it since I always take the bus. Thanks though,” she told him. She was going to be coming over that night and staying for two weeks. That night when they went to bed, Ella was in rather conservative pajamas, while Lucifer was just in his shorts and Chloe in her tank top and shorts which was how they always slept. 

When Ella laid down, she looked a little awkward and kept a few inches between herself and Lucifer and he chuckled. “Come now, Ella. There’s nothing wrong with a little snuggle,” he held out his arm to her. 

Ella looked at Chloe for permission before sliding over and laying against his side, with her hand on his stomach and didn’t take long at all to relax. Apparently great hugs translated to great cuddles. Once she was relaxed, his wings flared to life and wrapped around them all and Ella gasped. 

“You okay Ella?” Chloe asked. 

“Yeah. I was just surprised. They’re so soft and warm,” she said almost glowing. 

Chloe giggled. “Beats a blanket any of the week,” she agreed. 

“You got that right,” Ella grinned. 

Lucifer laughed. This he was comfortable with. Having two women in bed with him was nothing new, though the fact that he wasn’t sleeping with one of them was. The wings were a little less comfortable, but he had gotten so used to using them around Chloe and Trixie, that it was pretty much second nature by now, and it didn’t take them long to get to sleep.


	43. Chapter 43

The next two weeks while Ella was there went well. After the first night things were much less awkward. Trixie had come in for nightmares once during that time and ended up sandwiched between Ella and Lucifer, partially because Ella was smallest and partially because she was closest to the door. Lucifer had gone downstairs to party a few times, sometimes with Chloe while Ella sat with Trixie, not that Chloe partook of all the drugs he did, of course. Despite the fact that they would barely affect her anymore, she was still too much of a cop to go there. They always went back up before midnight though, for the sake of the experiment they needed a full night’s sleep. 

The last day Linda and Amenadiel came over for dinner to check Ella for divinity. Lucifer probably could have, but he had been cut off from his divinity for so long in hell that Amenadiel had more experience with such things. They waited until after dinner before Amenadiel had Ella take his hand and he let his senses wash over her. “It seems that the emotional component is as I believed. While Ella does have a very slight aspect of divinity, probably residual from last night, she is most definitely not a celestial nor is she in the process of it. 

Ella pouted for a minute, but got over it. “Oh well. It would have been nice. And at least I got to see what it was like to sleep with wings. That was nice.”

“And I got to have two women in my bed again, even if one of them was only platonic. That was nice too,” Lucifer said, mostly joking and chuckled when Chloe smacked his arm. “Only kidding, dearest.” 

“Dad, can I go play for a little while? Aunt Linda and Uncle Amenadiel haven’t heard me play let.” 

“Of course, urchin,” Lucifer told her. He had told them about music definitely being Trixie’s gift, but they hadn’t heard it yet. 

Lucifer hadn’t noticed Linda’s eyes widen at the ‘Dad’. That hadn’t come up in their sessions, and she made a mental note to bring it up in the next one. Lucifer was making far greater strides than she had ever dreamed five years ago, but this was something that concerned her, though he had surprised her often enough lately that she could admit that she may be overreacting. Her train of thought ended quickly though at the beautiful music coming from the piano and the emotions settling over the room. “Is that what she’s feeling?” Linda asked. 

“Isn’t it cool?” Ella answered. 

“The music projects her feelings, but only if she’s playing what she feels. If she’s playing something else more structured it doesn’t,” Lucifer explained to Linda. 

By the time she stopped an hour later, they were all feeling more buoyant, and Linda and Amenadiel left with a smile, offering to drop Ella off at home on their way, which she accepted. 

The next day was Friday and Lucifer’s therapy session. Now that he was back to work at the precinct Friday was the slowest day there, and the club usually didn’t pick up until later, so it was the best time for him. Unless something came up of course, which did happen from time to time. 

Linda wasted no time in jumping right in. “So I heard Trixie call you Dad,” she told him. 

“Yes. She has been doing that for a few weeks. It was rather startling at first, but I’ve grown used to it.”

“How did that happen?” she asked. 

“Apparently she asked her mother if she could who asked me and I agreed,” Lucifer told her. 

“You just agreed. Just like that,” Linda said skeptically. 

“Well there was quite a bit more to it than that, including a long conversation about feelings with the detective, but yes. I agreed.”

“Because Trixie wanted it?” Linda asked. 

“Yes, and because once the detective assured me that I could never become my father and that I wouldn’t make a huge mess of things, I had no reason to object,” he told her. 

“Okay, and how does it make you feel. Really feel,” she asked. 

Lucifer sighed. He was getting more used to talking about his feelings with both Linda and Chloe, but it still wasn’t exactly easy for him. He took a minute to formulate his thoughts. “Scared, mostly, but supposedly that is normal and all parents feel that way. Also…accepted, I suppose would be the best word for it.”

“You’re right. Scared is a normal feeling for any parent, but that depends on what it is that you’re afraid of,” she told him. 

“Of breaking her. Of hurting her. Of…losing her. Of messing it up just like I mess everything else up,” Lucifer managed to admit after a moment. 

“Then yes. That’s completely normal, but lets go back to the you messing everything else up part. I thought we were past that,” she said concerned. 

“We will never be past it, doctor,” Lucifer said emotionlessly. “I have just learned to deal with it.” He felt his phone buzz and pulled it out of his pocket to read the text from Chloe. “Sorry doctor. Gotta run. Crime scene,” he said leaving quicker than usual and Linda sighed heavily and sat back. She wondered if he was right. If there really was no getting past it. There was no guidebook for insecurities that had been festering for millennia. That didn’t mean she was going to stop trying though. 

That weekend was spent with school shopping, which Chloe almost regretted taking Lucifer along for. She had never spent so much on clothes in her life, but there wasn’t an excessive amount of them, though it was borderline, they were just very expensive clothes. Chloe had tried to protest, but when Lucifer replied, “She’s a Morningstar now. She should dress like one,” she couldn’t help but relent. He had done the same with her when they got married. Most of her wardrobe had been replaced with higher end designer clothes, though he did relent on the casual style given her line of work. She only had a few fancy gowns, just as Trixie now did. Most of Trixie’s clothes were also casual since wearing fancy dresses to school wasn’t exactly normal. 

Trixie came home from her first day of her new middle school rather irritated, but not overly so. When Chloe asked her what was wrong, she looked at Lucifer and asked, “Is there /any/ woman in this city you /haven’t/ had sex with?” 

Chloe did a spit take, but Lucifer just shrugged. “Probably.” 

“Where did that come from?” Chloe asked shocked. 

“Three of my teachers today…” 

“They talked about that?” Chloe interrupted looking like she was ready to go down and rip some people a new one. 

“No. Of course not. But the way the blushed when they read my last name and asked if I was related made it obvious,” Trixie told her. 

“I’ve made no secret of my prior promiscuity,” Lucifer said unapologetically. 

Chloe decided to take a different tact. “Hopefully, now that the initial reaction is passed, you won’t have to worry about it anymore, but just let me know if they treat you any differently than the other kids okay?” 

Trixie nodded. “Okay. I will,” she promised and she wouldn’t hesitate. “Oh and we picked our instruments today in band. They wouldn’t let me pick piano though,” she pouted. 

“What instrument did you choose?” Lucifer asked curiously. 

“Saxophone,” she told him. 

Lucifer nodded. “A good choice. When do you need one by?” 

“Next week, and we need some other stuff with it too,” she told him. “This week we’re gonna be working on reading music so I’ll be really bored.” 

“At least you’ll get to start playing next week. I’ll make some time to visit the music store this week,” he promised. 

“I can go with you,” Chloe offered. 

“You’re welcome if you want to, but I know your schedule is less flexible than mine,” he told her. 

“We can go after work one day,” she suggested and Lucifer nodded. 

Thankfully Trixie didn’t have any more problems with her teachers for the rest of the week and Chloe and Lucifer made it to the music store on Wednesday afternoon. Chloe wanted to rent a saxophone, but Lucifer argued against it. “Her gift is music, dearest, regardless of the instrument. It will always get use, and it’s not like we can’t afford it.”

Chloe had to admit that he was right so they got a new top of the line saxophone that Lucifer tested out before they left, and Chloe smiled, realizing that he had a talent for more than the piano too. He pronounced it perfect and just handed the owner the list of everything else they needed and he gathered it up for them. “You come here often,” Chloe realized as the owner was collecting their stuff. 

“Yes. This is where I bought all my pianos and they service them as well,” he explained. 

“All your pianos?” she asked. “I thought you only had two.”

“I only have two at any given time. Between angelic battles, human criminals, and even demons once, I tend to break an inordinate number of them,” he pointed out. 

“Oh. I forgot about that,” she said sheepishly, remember the three times that she’d seen them broken, and figuring there were probably a lot more.


	44. Chapter 44

The next few weeks settled into a comfortable routine. Now that Trixie was back in school, things were easier to manage. Unless they were on an active case, Lucifer used the late afternoon after she got home to work in the club where he could be close enough to be there if she needed anything and go up to check on her every hour or so. The days when they were on an active case, Maze came over to sit with her until they got home. That freed her up to do more of her usual bounty hunting job again, which had mostly been put on hold over the summer. One or two nights a week, Lucifer stayed downstairs and partied the night away, sometimes with one or more of their ‘family’, including Chloe, and sometimes by himself. He even made an effort to take Chloe out for a nice date, just the two of them, once a week. He thought they had found that balance that Chloe had talked about and couldn’t imagine being happier.

Unfortunately, that happiness was disrupted. He had been partying in the club by himself that evening and long into the night, and had a great time. He headed back upstairs around four am and the buzz that he was forcibly holding onto immediately faded at the sight that met him. The penthouse was trashed. It looked like there had been a full battle in there. “Chloe!” He yelled, barreling for their room to find it empty. “Beatrice!” was his next cry, finding her room empty too and just as trashed as the rest of the penthouse. He let out a scream of rage and pain before tearing everything apart himself looking for clues that he finally found. 

He clutched the long feathers in his hand so tightly that his fingers were white as he frantically tried to think of something, anything, he could do. It was only a moment before he ran out to the balcony and jumped, flaring his wings midfall and flying as fast as he’d ever had to Amenadiel and Linda’s house. It would be about three times as fast as driving, and he wasn’t in the right presence of mind to think to use the phone. He barreled through the door yelling for Amenadiel, breaking the door in the process in his haste. He couldn’t even spare the emotion to feel bad when he heard Charlie start screaming as Amenadiel and Linda ran into the room worriedly 

As soon as he saw his brother, Lucifer fell to his knees as though he couldn’t possibly hold himself up any longer. “They…They took them brother,” he said in an anguished moan. 

“Who took who, Lucifer?” Amenadiel asked kneeling in front of him to steady him since he looked like he might fall over at any moment. 

Lucifer opened his hand and let the feathers fall. “Chloe and Beatrice. They took them,” he choked out. Amenadiel didn’t need any more information. The feathers said it all. “Please. Help me. I will be in your debt for eternity. Anything you ask…ever…”

Amenadiel looked at Linda with an apologetic look, knowing that there was a chance that he wouldn’t be coming back, but he couldn’t not help his brother before he said, “All I ask is that if I don’t make it back and you do, you look after Linda and Charlie for me.” 

“Done,” Lucifer said quickly. “But I will still be in your debt.” 

Amenadiel didn’t argue, he just took control of the situation. “You can’t into the Silver City, but as far as I know, I haven’t been barred from the gates since I was intended to come back one day. I will go and see what I can find out.”

“I can’t just sit here, brother,” Lucifer told him, begging for a job, an option, anything he could possibly do. 

“I don’t know that it will do any good, but you can always attempt to make a bargain with father,” Amenadiel suggested, remembering how he’d done just that when he was dying and Chloe had been in danger. 

“That time wasn’t his doing. It was just a random human danger,” Lucifer told him. 

“I know. But that is all I can think of for you to do,” Amenadiel said honestly and waited for the nod before he took wing and flew off, back to heaven where he might not be allowed to return from. 

Linda had gone to get Charlie and calm him down while they were talking and she got back just in time to see Amenadiel fly off, setting the toddler in his playpen before going to Lucifer. “Come on Lucifer. Let’s sit down and get you some tea or something, okay?” she coaxed. 

Lucifer jerked away from her hand. “No. Not yet,” he said more harshly than he intended, but Linda didn’t take offense. “I need to…” he took a deep breath and closed his eyes, remaining on his knees. “Father…please…let them go. Let them live their lives freely. I will do anything, be anything, go anywhere…whatever you want I will do. I will be the best, most loyal son you can imagine if you please just let them go…” He continued to make promises, beg and wheedle as Linda felt the tears dripping down her face at the spectacle. 

She could almost feel his grief and fear pouring off of him, and to see Lucifer, always so strong and proud, begging and completely submitting himself to another’s will was the most heartbreaking thing she’d ever seen. To think that people always said the devil didn’t have feelings. She went and picked Charlie back up, needing to hug someone right now, as Lucifer continued for about twenty minutes. 

Lucifer was stopped by the whooshing sound of wings and he spun to look, seeing two of his brothers standing there, Amenadiel not among them. “We are here to escort you to father,” one of the sneered, both of them with blades in hand. 

Lucifer stood, wiping the tears from his face, and nodded. “I will come peacefully. There’s no need for violence.” 

They both looked at him skeptically and one of them put away his blade and took out a set of manacles that Lucifer knew could never be broken since they had been forged in heaven. He obediently held out his hands in front of him to allow them to put them on, but his brothers apparently had other ideas though and grabbed his arm, wrenching his hands behind his back, and he couldn’t help but wince as his shoulder twisted painfully. The wrist manacles were followed by his ankles, with a short chain to allow him to walk, though with only shuffling steps. Once that was done, the angel ordered, “Wings.” Lucifer flared his wings to life and folded them together, straight back, and winced again as the cuff bound them together tight enough to dig into the skin, but refused to give them any other reaction as Linda looked on in horror, only the fact that she was holding her son and needed to protect him keeping her from intervening. 

Once he was all trussed up, they dragged him out the door, not even giving him a chance to walk himself, and then flew away, each holding one of his arms, and Linda collapsed onto the couch letting the tears fall. She knew that it was only four thirty in the morning, but she couldn’t deal with this alone right now, so she texted Ella and Maze to come over as soon as possible.

Lucifer and his ‘escort’ arrived at the gates of heaven and Lucifer half shuffled and was half dragged through the streets of the city on display for the masses, and he absently wondered when the jeering and throwing things would start, but apparently angels were a little more dignified than that. The looks he was getting though…he just looked straight in front of him and held his head high as they headed for the throne room. 

Lucifer’s emotionless mask faltered at the sight of Chloe and Trixie, not chained like he was, but being restrained by two of his brothers with their hands held behind their backs. He took in their appearance and noticed the cut lip and forming bruise on Chloe’s face and the tear-tracks on Trixie’s. He gave them both a look of longing and sympathy, but didn’t speak. “Lucifer,” Chloe gasped almost inaudibly, tears welling in her eyes at his presence and his chains. 

Trixie wasn’t nearly as quiet though, already having been through so much. “Daddy!” she cried struggling to get to him. 

“Enough,” God snapped an order, stilling Trixie but not stopping her tears. Lucifer looked at her apologetically before he was dragged to the front and pushed to his knees. “Well if it isn’t my wayward son,” he sneered. 

“Father,” Lucifer said submissively and bowed his head, causing Chloe to choke out a sob. 

“You have offered me anything I wish in return for their lives and freedom. Does that include your life?” he asked coldly. 

“Yes,” Lucifer said without hesitation.

“No!” Chloe screamed in denial, but a hand in her hair yanking her head back, cut it off. 

God seemed to consider the matter for a moment before nodding. “Very well. Your life and in return they are free to go and live their lives without interference so long as they follow my laws.”

“Thank you, father,” Lucifer said gratefully, as God motioned to his new right hand who pulled his blade and put it to Lucifer’s neck.


	45. Chapter 45

Maze and Ella had ridden together, Ella on the back of Maze’s bike. Linda’s text hadn’t said what was wrong, but a text to come over now at four thirty in the morning wasn’t going to be a good thing. The first thing they noticed was the broken down front door and they ran in worriedly to find Linda holding onto Charlie for dear life and they were both crying. Ella was the first one to take control and went over, pulling Charlie from Linda’s arms and going to find him a snack. She was willing to bet that he hadn’t eaten yet at this hour of the morning. “What happened?” Maze asked, still standing, hands on her still sheathed for now blades and looking for threats. 

Linda took a moment to collect herself and by the time she started to speak, Ella had returned with Charlie and a bowl of cheerios to sit him at the table. “L-Lucifer came. A-angels took Chloe and Trixie. Amenadiel went to help get them back while Lucifer…Lucifer prayed to…to his father for mercy. The things he was offering…” she trailed off for a minute. 

Ella was openly crying by this point. Losing her friends was bad enough to but know that Lucifer was begging and submitting himself to the father that he hated and that hated him…it was so much, but she also knew that he wouldn’t have hesitated to do so for Chloe and Trixie. 

While Ella was crying, Maze was growling lowly as she shook in anger and Linda continued. “Then…Then two other angels flew in. They…they chained Lucifer up. Even…even his wings…and dragged him out. He…he didn’t even fight them. They said that they were taking him to…to his father. That’s when I messaged you.” 

Ella moved over next to Linda and pulled her into a hug as Maze paced. If anyone had forgotten that she was a demon, they would have been reminded as she snarled like a caged animal. At one point she noticed the feathers on the floor and picked them up and gave them a good long sniff. “What are you doing?” Ella asked through her tears. 

“Getting their scent,” Maze growled. “They come anywhere near my family again and I will know. And I will destroy them.” 

Ella nodded. “I may not have any powers, but I’ll still help,” she said with conviction. 

“Me too,” Linda agreed. 

It was Tuesday morning, so Ella had to take a moment to call out of work and let them know that Chloe and Lucifer had a family emergency and wouldn’t be in either. She knew that they wouldn’t be happy about not hearing from them directly, but Ella doubted there was phone service in heaven and that they would be allowed to use them if there was, so hearing it from someone was better than nothing. Unfortunately, she had no way to explain why they couldn’t call themselves and just ended up sounding like an idiot, but all that could be fixed later. Assuming they ever came back. 

Linda was a little calmer now, having taken comfort from her friends, but was now just staring into space. Once Ella got off the phone she asked, “Are you okay?” 

“I’m just scared,” Linda admitted. “Lucifer always said the only way he would ever be allowed back in heaven was if he was dragged there for execution. Chloe and Trixie…what if they kill them too? And Amenadiel…they told him if he went back he wouldn’t be able to leave again. H-How am I supposed to raise an angel baby alone?” she started to cry again. 

Maze snapped at that. “How can you worry about yourself at a time like this. Lucifer is up there, probably being killed as we speak and who knows what’s happening to Chloe and Trixie and you’re worrying about raising your kid alone?!”

“Maze, stop,” Ella said firmly seeing Linda fall apart even more at the recriminating words from her best friend. “That was just one of the things on the list that scared her, remember. She’s dealing with a lot. We all are. But snapping at each other isn’t going to help.” 

*Back in the Silver City*

No one had noticed Amenadiel slip in at the back of the room, having followed them as soon as he saw Lucifer being dragged through the streets, which had taken hours. They seemed to have taken the scenic route for pure spite. He couldn’t help his own tears as he watched his brother unflinchingly sacrifice his life for those he loved. He had never been so sure that he’d chosen the right side before that moment. 

The executioner tensed as he got ready to do his duty, but Trixie managed to get away from the angel restraining her by stomping on his foot as hard as she could and she barreled into Lucifer, falling to her knees herself and hugging him around the middle. “Please, Daddy, don’t leave me. I love you,” she sobbed. God held out a hand staying the executioner’s blade for the moment. 

Lucifer swallowed heavily around the lump in his throat, closed his eyes and leaned his head down on top of hers before saying the words that he’d never uttered aloud just yet. “And I love you, urchin. And you know I would never leave you if I had a better option.” She just hugged him tighter and cried harder. “Look at me, Beatrice,” he said softly and she looked up, but didn’t let him go. “Do you remember the talk we had about how sometimes the bad things are worth it?” She nodded miserably. “Well you and your mother are always worth it,” he told her. 

God waved his hand at the angel that had been holding Trixie and he came and pulled her away, but she didn’t want to go and when she yelped in pain, Lucifer struggled against his chains for the first time as he cried out, “Don’t hurt her!”

Once she was back in place, God started to raise his hand again, but Chloe spoke first. “Wait. Please. Can I…Can I just have a moment…to say goodbye too…please,” she begged. 

God sighed. “Very well,” and waved a hand dismissively and the angle holding Chloe let go. 

She walked over and knelt in front of him, reaching a hand to his cheek. “Oh Lucifer,” she whispered heartbrokenly. “Why? You came here knowing you would die.” 

Lucifer gave her a wry, sad smile. “Yes. And I would do it again. And again. Don’t you know that detective,” he whispered, flashing them both back to the day he jumped in front of an axe for her. 

She choked a sob and hugged him tightly, burying her face in his neck for a moment before pulling back to look at him. “How am I supposed to go on wi-without you?” she whispered brokenly. 

“You can. You will,” Lucifer assured her. “For Beatrice. The two of you will still have each other, but if I lost you both…it would completely destroy me. This is a far better choice. Please, Chloe. Live. Find happiness. Find…find love again some day. Do it for me. So that none of this will be in vain.” She looked into his eyes pleadingly through her tears and saw nothing but conviction and love reflected back at her so she nodded. “Always remember that I love you, Chloe. You were my first and only love. And I have no regrets.”

“I love you, Lucifer. With all that I am, forever,” she whispered kissing him softly with both her hands on his cheeks as he leaned forward into it, wishing that he could hold her too, one last time. 

Chloe was pulled away far too soon though as God said, “That’s enough. No more stalling.”

“Please father. Let them go. Don’t make them watch,” Lucifer begged, despite knowing that it was futile. 

“No,” he said coldly. “Let them see the price of defiance and take that as a warning.” 

Lucifer took a deep breath knowing this was the end, and using what he was sure was his last breath to say, “Close your eyes, my loves. Please.” 

Trixie immediately did as he asked and squeezed her eyes shut as tight as she could make them, but Chloe didn’t. His back was to her now anyway, so he would never know that she disobeyed his last request. 

Lucifer felt the cold metal against his throat again and looked up at his father unwaveringly as he waited for the end. Just as he felt the blade start to dig in, his father reached out a hand to put on the executioners arm, stopping him mid-motion as a trickle of blood started to run down Lucifer’s neck. It was as if the entire world paused in that instant and no one moved or breathed for a few seconds, before God grabbed the blade and threw it to the side. “Get them all out of my sight. Don’t unchain him until you dump him back on earth.” He stormed out of the room in a temper. 

Amenadiel tried to follow, but he was grabbed on the way out and reminded that he had been told that if he came back then he wouldn’t be permitted to leave again. When he tried to fight his way out he ended up thrown in a cell to be dealt with later.


	46. Chapter 46

Lucifer once again fell to his knees as he was released from his chains back on Earth and stretched his wings out in relief just two missiles slammed into him, sobbing into his shoulders, and he wrapped both his arms and his wings around them as his first tears fell since his brothers had arrived to take him back to the Silver City. No words were spoken as they all just held each other and cried their relief. Night had already fallen and the temperatures falling with it before they broke apart and looked around to see nothing but dessert all around them. 

“Where are we?” Chloe asked. 

Lucifer looked up at the sky for a long moment before he said, “Somewhere in west central Africa,” he told her. “I guess we’ll have to make our own way home.” 

“If we can find someplace nearby to rest, we can leave in the morning,” she told him, brushing a hand down her face. She was exhausted, emotionally spent, and just wanted to spend the night holding him, and she knew that he and Trixie both felt the same. 

Lucifer nodded and said, “Climb on my back, urchin.” Once she was settled there, remembering the position well from their time in hell, Lucifer got to his feet and lifted Chloe in a bridal position before he took flight. Having Trixie limiting the range of motion in his wings made it more difficult to fly but it was still doable. He wished he’d ever gotten around to teaching Chloe to fly though. 

It only took about twenty minutes to find a small town and a secluded place to land, then another ten to find a little inn. They didn’t take credit cards though and all his cash was American, so Lucifer ended up paying for a room with his gold cufflinks. As soon as they were inside, the three of them piled into one of the beds, leaving the other one untouched, but no one had any intention of letting go so that Trixie could have her own bed. Lucifer’s wings and arms held them tightly as they all passed out. 

They woke the next morning feeling a lot more together than last night, but still feeling the effects. The first thing Lucifer did was check his phone but the Silver City had shorted it out. Chloe and Trixie didn’t have their phones at all, so they were cut off until they got home. Chloe knew that they were going to have to talk about all this soon before all the trauma festered, but decided it could wait until they got home. Thankfully the inn also offered breakfast so there was no need to find something else to trade for a meal. 

After they’d eaten, Lucifer began to look for a secluded place to fly from. “Why don’t we just get a plane home?” Chloe suggested. 

Lucifer shook his head. “How are you going to explain suddenly being in Africa, with no stamps on your passport and no transportation leading out of the US. Not to mention I don’t think any of us have our passports anyway, and while I do have an untraceable worldwide Visa under an alias, we need more than that to get a flight.”

“Oh. Right,” Chloe blushed. “I hadn’t thought that through I guess.” 

Lucifer chuckled and reached out to brush a hand down her cheek. “It’s understandable dearest. You’re still new to all this celestial stuff so you haven’t had as long to consider the issues it can cause. It’s not the first time I’ve been in this situation, though it is the first time this century.” 

By the time the conversation was finished, he’d found an appropriately off the path spot, and they reassumed the position and he took off, flying west. With the wind rushing by and the cool air bringing the spray from the ocean, no conversation was had while they flew…and flew…and flew. It was mid-afternoon before Lucifer finally landed, stumbling and panting. “Are you okay?” Chloe asked worriedly, as Trixie jumped down, but grabbed Lucifer’s hand. She had yet to speak since they had left heaven and she was getting worried. 

“I’m fine. Just tired,” he assured her. His wings were aching from the exertion, the awkward movement patterns, and the bruises from the cuffs that had been placed on them, but it was nothing a little rest couldn’t fix. 

Chloe looked at him searchingly and came to the same conclusion. “Where are we?” she asked again. 

“Brazil. I need to rest and we all need a good meal. Thankfully, I can use my untraceable card here though.” 

Chloe nodded. “Okay. Let’s go eat and find a place to stay for the night then.”

They walked through the city looking for a good place to eat and Chloe looked around in awe. She had never been outside the US and the hustle and bustle of Rio De Janeiro was like a whole different world for her. Lucifer’s arm wrapped around her and she slid her arm around his waist and leaned into his side as they walked. It took a few minutes before she looked over at Trixie to see her reaction and her worry flared brighter than ever. She was clutching Lucifer’s hand like a lifeline and basically hugging his arm, not even looking up from the ground. She caught Lucifer’s eye and glanced down at Trixie to see if he noticed and he just nodded grimly. He’d definitely noticed, but he knew that they couldn’t do anything about it at this moment. 

Lucifer had considered just grabbing something quick and easy from one of the street vendors, but he knew that they needed a real full meal, not having eaten since breakfast, and he especially had nearly pushed to his limits. Normally it would only have taken a couple hours to get this far, but his flight speed was slowed greatly with the limited movement of his wings and the extra weight of carrying them both. 

Finally he found a place that would have healthy, filling food, and offered takeout. While they waited for the food, he studied the map to see where the best closest hotel was and once the food arrived, steered them to the Royal Rio Palace hotel and got a luxurious suite for them. He expected that they would be stationary for the rest of the day and night, him not being up to flying anymore until tomorrow, so he didn’t want them to feel cramped. 

Once they were in the room, the went to eat, but Trixie wouldn’t let go of Lucifer so he ended up eating around her while she sat in his lap. It did help though that he could monitor what she was eating and coax her into eating a little more. She had barely nibbled at her breakfast so he was determined that she get a good meal now, and Chloe looked appreciatively at him for that. 

Lucifer decided, for her peace of mind, to wait to talk until after they finished eating so when they were done he took her over to the couch and sat down next to her, while Chloe sat on her other side. “What’s wrong, urchin?” he asked gently, and she immediately burst into tears and hugged his side tightly. 

“Come, child. Talk to us,” he coaxed, completely at a loss to how to handle this. 

When she didn’t speak, Chloe tried. “It’s all okay, Monkey. We’re safe now.”

“No we’re not,” she wailed. 

“What do you mean, baby?” Chloe asked, wondering what was going on in her head.

“They’ll come back. They’ll take us again. They’ll kill Dad and us,” she cried. 

“Hey now,” Lucifer said reaching a hand under her chin to lift her head. “Look at me, urchin. He would not have let us go just to come after us again. I don’t know why he let us go or what punishment he may inflict instead, but if it was going to be death, he would have done it there.” 

“Y-you were gonna die. You were gonna…gonna leave us…” she cried. 

“Only to save your lives, child,” Lucifer told her. 

“I don’t care! I don’t want to be saved if it means you aren’t,” Trixie said almost more mad than sad now. “You keep getting hurt and worse to save us, but no one ever saves you! It’s not fair!” 

Lucifer was struck dumb for a moment as he realized what she said and just held her as she cried for a minute as he tried to wrap his head around that. Chloe kept silent, not being able to argue that point with her daughter and wanting to give it time to sink into Lucifer’s thick skull that he was important too. It was a good five minutes before he managed to find words. “You have no idea how much you /have/ saved me, urchin. How much you have /both/ saved me,” he looked at Chloe too. 

He moved off the couch and knelt in front of Trixie and looked at her seriously. “When I was stuck in hell, /you/ came to save me.”

“But you just ended up saving me instead,” Trixie argued. 

“Yes, but you saved me at the same time,” he told her. When she looked confused he continued. “You know how time goes a lot faster down there?” She nodded. “Well I was there for about fifty years before you got there.” Her eyes widened. “You know how that place sucks all the joy and confidence from you. You can imagine how I felt after so long. Then you showed up. You believed in me. You trusted me. You had /faith/ in /me/, and for the first time in what seemed like forever, you made me see that maybe I did really matter to someone, and I mustn’t be as bad as I thought if someone like you could see me that way.” 

Lucifer put aside all feelings of discomfort at baring himself so freely. This whole situation had really dug home the point that life was too short to hold back. At least from those you are closest to. And if dredging up his own feelings would help her, then it would have really made him the monster that he always saw himself as if he didn’t. 

“R-really?” Trixie asked almost in awe.

“Yes, Beatrice. You saved me that day in a way no one else could have. And you and your mother have both been saving me in different ways every day since,” he said seriously. “And that’s why I will always save you. No matter what. Even if I have to die to do it. And it will /always/ be worth it.” He knew that it probably wasn’t what she needed to hear, but he refused to lie. Especially to her. Even to save her feelings. 

“I just…I don’t want to lose you,” she sniffled. 

“And I don’t want to lose you either, urchin,” he said softly and suddenly had an armful of crying child again. And this time he didn’t have a change of clothes to get all the snot and tears off of his shirt, but at this particular moment, he didn’t especially care.


	47. Chapter 47

Lucifer, Chloe, and Trixie spent the rest of the evening talking and trying to get Trixie through this newest trauma, as Lucifer and Chloe both buried theirs. They knew they had a long way to go though and that Trixie would probably be back to more frequent visits with Dr. Linda for a while, but there was nothing for it. Since they’d eaten about halfway between lunch and dinner, once it started getting dark, Lucifer ordered room service. A smaller meal this time. Just soup and sandwiches with three crème brulees for dessert. This time Trixie ate more without coaching, but still didn’t finish her food since she wasn’t as hungry, but no one was going to complain when she still had dessert anyway. She deserved it after everything she’d been through. 

They once again slept as a group, wrapped in Lucifer’s wings and when they woke up, they had a big breakfast and set out for what Lucifer hoped would be the last leg of their trip, but reasonably speaking knew he would probably need one more, and he was right. This stop was in Mexico City and he had pushed himself harder than he ever had before to make it this far, knowing that in most towns in Mexico it may be difficult to find a place where he could use his card and he wasn’t familiar enough with the area to know which ones were best so he figured the capital was the best choice. This time, since it wasn’t over open water the entire way, they were able to make a brief stop for lunch before being back in the air which meant that between that and going a little bit further than they had yesterday, it was an appropriate time for dinner by the time they landed. 

Once more they got a nice hotel and had a big meal and as they were going to bed, Chloe smiled and said, “You know, as much as I appreciate the world tour and all, I’ll be glad when we make it back home.” 

Lucifer laughed at the joke and had to agree. “That makes two of us, dearest.” 

“Three!” Trixie chimed in. 

The next morning they once again had a big breakfast before hitting the skies, but since they only had to go about half the distance that they had the last two days, it was the middle of the day when Lucifer landed on their balcony and immediately fell to his knees in exhaustion. “Lucifer!” Chloe cried in alarm as he fell. 

“I’m okay, darling. Just want to not move for a month or two,” he joked. “And really wishing that human drugs could do something for my sore muscles.”

She and Trixie half carried him inside to the couch, not that Trixie managed to help much but she tried. Once they were inside, Lucifer said, “If either of you have your phones here you should probably start calling people and letting them know we’re alive.” 

Trixie ran to her room to get her phone since she had been sleeping when they came and Chloe started rummaging through the wreckage looking for hers. “I didn’t realize how much damage was done in here,” she said apologetically. 

“That just means you put up a good fight, darling,” Lucifer told her. “Besides, I rather added quite a bit to it when I got home and saw you were gone.” 

She just nodded and couldn’t imagine how he must have felt. She knew that they were going to need to talk about that kind of stuff soon, as well as tell him the whole story about what happened before he got there. He would insist on no less. She just hoped she could hold him off until the rest of the family was there so she would only have to tell it once even if she knew they would be talking about it later. Instead she settled for an almost joke. “Yet another piano, gone.”

Lucifer laughed and shook his head. “The piano was the last thing on my mind, detective.” 

They were saved from the more serious turn of the conversation by Trixie running back into the room with her phone and Lucifer took it from her while Chloe kept looking for her own, knowing that it would probably be dead by now even if it was in one piece. He decided to call Linda first, partially because she was probably freaking out the most having been there for much of it, and partially because his brother deserved to be the first to know that he was back. 

Linda answered the phone after the first ring. “Trixie?!” she half asked as she picked up. 

“Not quite,” Lucifer drawled. 

“Lucifer! Oh my god…I mean…never mind…what happened? Are you okay? Are Chloe and Trixie? Why are you on her phone?”

“We are all fine. It’s a long story, but as for why I have Trixie’s phone, mine got shorted out in the Silver City, and we are still looking for Chloe’s.”

“And it’s probably dead or broken anyway,” she said loudly more for Linda’s benefit than Lucifers. 

“Yes. What she said. We’d be happy to share the whole story if you and Amenadiel would like to come by this afternoon,” he told her, confused when she burst into tears. 

“I…was hoping that…he was with you,” she said. 

“He’s not back?” Lucifer asked worriedly. 

“No. I haven’t seen or heard from him since that morning,” she told him. 

“Well there is no reason to lose hope yet. We just got back ourselves,” he told her, feeling a sting of guilt for asking for his help anyway. His brother had a family too, and he may have just torn it apart to save his own.

“Th-thanks Lucifer. I needed to hear that,” Linda told him. “Charlie and I will be by as soon as we can get there.” 

The next call was to Maze with much the same results, and he would have called Ella next, but she had been with Maze in their apartment and had put him on speakerphone and were on their way over too. Once that was done, Chloe asked to use the phone to call Dan. Even if he and Trixie weren’t on speaking terms, he deserved to know that they were okay. He would know that they had disappeared for almost a week since she hadn’t been to work. 

“Trix!” Dan answered the phone, much as everyone else had. 

“No. It’s me,” Chloe told him. “She’s okay. We’re all okay. We just got back. I’m not sure if you know what happened…”

“Ella told me as much as she knew which was apparently gotten from Linda,” Dan told her. 

“Then you’re pretty much caught up with everyone else. They are all on their way over here, and…” she hesitated a moment before deciding against inviting him for Trixie’s sake. Until she was ready to forgive him and let him back into her life, she wouldn’t force them to be in the same room together. Especially now. “I’ll just go ahead and tell you what happened.”

“She still doesn’t want to see me?” he asked sadly. 

“Not yet, but she’ll come around,” she assured him. 

“So what happened?” he asked. 

“A group of angels came after us and took us up to heaven…The Silver City. God was mad that Lucifer turned us into angels and there was a lot of talk. I got a little bruised up in the fight when they came to get us, but otherwise we weren’t hurt. Then Lucifer got there and God asked for his life in return for ours and obviously he agreed, but then God changed his mind and sent us back. Unfortunately we got dumped in Africa with no phones so we just now made our way back home.” 

“But you’re all okay? L-Lucifer too?” he asked needing to hear it again. 

“Yes. We’re all fine,” she assured him just as the elevator dinged. “Linda’s here so I need to go.”

“Okay. Just…more details later? And tell Trixie that I love her and I’m glad she’s okay,” he said. 

“Okay to both. I’ll talk to you later,” she said hanging up. 

She immediately gave Trixie the message, and she just huffed and didn’t respond. When she turned back around, she did a double take at Charlie in Lucifer’s lap. He didn’t look too pleased at the prospect, but shook his head when Linda tried to take him back. Chloe looked at him curiously but decided against asking right now. Especially when the elevator dinged again letting Maze and Ella up, who also looked strangely at Lucifer holding the toddler, before also deciding not to ask. 

“Okay so now we’re all here, what the hell happened?” Ella asked. 

Lucifer looked at Chloe and said, “I would very much like to know that as well.”


	48. Chapter 48

Chloe took a deep breath and started the story, knowing that she would have to give a lot more detail than she had to Dan, but having nothing to hide anyway, even if Lucifer was probably going to either give her an earful or have a heart attack in places. “Well it started about an hour after Trixie was in bed, and I was watching TV when four angels flew in. When they went to grab me I tried to fight, especially when two of them started looking around and ended up in Trixie’s room, but I…I couldn’t…”

Lucifer pulled her tight against his side. “There’s no shame in that, detective. They have been training to fight for millennia and you were outnumbered at that. The fact that you managed to put up a fight at all is something to be proud of.”

“And where were you?” Maze snapped at Lucifer. “Your family was being kidnapped by your brothers, and you weren’t here. You should have been with them.”

“Don’t you think I know that, Mazikeen,” Lucifer snapped back. “And don’t think I will ever forgive myself for it.” 

Linda put a hand on Maze’s arm and shook her head before things could go any further and she huffed, but sat back and crossed her arms. Chloe sat up and shook her head, looking at Lucifer. “Don’t, Lucifer. Don’t blame yourself. This wasn’t your fault. You can’t watch us every second and you shouldn’t have to.”

“She’s right,” Linda agreed. “Sometimes things just happen. You have nothing to blame yourself for.” Maze grumbled but kept her mouth shut, and Linda decided to get things back on track. “So then what happened?”

“They took us to heaven…and I see why they call it the Silver City now, though I didn’t get to see much of it. I just got a glimpse before we were dragged into what I guess was a palace or something and taken to some kind of throne room. We were just held there for a while before some guy stormed in and sat down on the throne. I figured it was God when I saw Trixie glaring at him like she knew him, but then one of the angels called him father so then I was sure of it.” 

“You actually saw God. In person?” Ella asked wide-eyed. When Chloe nodded she said, “I hope you spit on him.” 

Chloe chuckled. “Unfortunately we were too far away.” 

“I kicked him though,” Trixie spoke up. 

“What?!” Lucifer spun to look at her in horror, amazed that she survived that. 

“When did you do that?” Chloe asked confused. 

“When I first met him before he sent me to hell,” Trixie told her. “He was being mean about Lucifer so I kicked him.” 

Lucifer gaped for a moment before turning back to Chloe. “Continue please before the urchin gives me a coronary.” 

Chloe bit back a laugh as she said, “I don’t know that continuing will help, given that she yelled at him and called him a..what was it?”

“A judgemental pillock,” Trixie said proudly and Lucifer pinched the bridge of his nose. 

“That ones completely your fault,” Chloe told him huffing a laugh. 

“I never intended for her to say it to his face,” Lucifer protested. 

“Anyway…” Linda jumped in, hoping to get some news about Amenadiel at some point. 

“Right so we’re standing there when he came in and then he starts ranting about Lucifer making us into angels and not being very nice about it, which is when Trixie yelled at him. Then he got mad and started demanding that we tell him how it happened. I fully intended to explain, if for no other reason than to keep him from killing us on the spot when Trixie spouted off that it was all his fault anyway, which really pissed him off and I thought he was going to smite us right then, but then he asked Trixie how she could dare to blame him.”

“I told him that if he never sent me to hell that Lucifer wouldn’t have had to protect me with his wings for so long,” Trixie told him. 

“Which is when I fully explained what we suspected about how it happened, and he went on another rant about Lucifer being reckless and disobedient before he stopped mid-sentence and seemed to be listening to something and then whispered to two of the angels who left while the others threw us in cells. They couldn’t even be nice enough to put us in the same cell, but at least they were next to each other so we could reach through the bars.”

“That must have been when I was praying to him,” Lucifer guessed. 

“Probably because we didn’t see anyone again for a long time, I’m not sure how long, but then we were being dragged back to the throne room just before you got there.”

“Then what happened?” Maze asked worriedly. 

“Well I was dragged in front of him and he asked me if in my offer of anything for their lives if that included my own life. Obviously I said yes and he ordered my execution.”

“Well you’re here so that can’t be the end of the story,” Ella said. 

“Just before they were about to kill him Trixie managed to get away from the angel holding her and went to hug him and God actually let them talk for a minute before they dragged her back away. Then I asked for a chance to say goodbye too and he surprisingly granted it. So then they were just about to do it again when Lucifer looks up at him, completely calm and like he’s just waiting patiently and the blade goes across his throat…” she took a shaky breath at the memory before continuing. “Then God reaches out and stops them. Grabs the blade, throws it across the room and tells us to get out of his sight and storms out.” 

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Ella said confused. “Why would he do that?” 

“That is the question of the hour,” Lucifer said. 

“I have a theory on that if you really want to hear it,” Linda told him. When Lucifer nodded curiously, she explained. “I don’t think any of us will disagree that he’s a complete jerk.” Everyone nodded. “But it would take the worst kind of monster to sit there and watch his own son unflinchingly offer his life with complete conviction to save his family, that just gave him what I would imagine are very emotional goodbyes, and still order that son’s death. I think that he had a crisis of conscience.” 

Lucifer snorted derisively. “That would imply that he ever actually cared.” 

“Not necessarily,” Linda told him. “You don’t have to care about someone to have mercy.”

“Mercy isn’t exactly something that my father is known for. At least not to those who actually know him.” 

“Maybe not, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t capable of it,” Linda told him. 

Lucifer shrugged noncommittally as a large glob of drool landing on his leg and he curled up his nose at Charlie, but made no move to hand him over. He did let Linda take him this time though. “You’re not going to change?” Maze asked in shock, the incident drawing attention to just how rough he looked. He had dried spots of who only knew what all over his shirt which was missing a button, not to mention all the dust and dirt all over his clothes. 

“I’ve spent the last three days flying here all the way from Africa. I don’t have the strength to move at the moment,” he drawled. 

“You’ve been back on earth for three days and couldn’t even manage a ‘hey we’re still alive’ phone call?!” Maze screeched. 

“We didn’t have a phone Maze,” Chloe told her calmly. 

Lucifer pulled his phone out of his pocket and tossed it to her. “The Silver City fried mine and neither of them had one on them when they were taken. If it helps we were back here for all of five minutes before we started making calls.”

“Five whole minutes?” Ella asked teasingly accusatory. 

Chloe chuckled. “That’s how long it took to carry Lucifer to the couch and for Trixie to find her phone.” 

“Speaking of phones,” Lucifer said looking at Maze. “Would you be willing to make a quick run and purchase a couple new phones for Chloe and I? I’ll worry about everything else in here later, but phones are rather necessary and movement is still not quite an option for me.” 

Maze huffed. “You do realize that I’m not your ‘right hand’ anymore right?” 

“I’m quite aware, otherwise I would be asking you to make arrangements for everything,” Lucifer drawled. “I am asking you as a friend because you know better than anyone what I want and have unrestricted access to my accounts to get it.” 

She was taken aback at his open admission and the fact that he had actually called her a friend. That wasn’t exactly a word that he used often. As such, she couldn’t exactly say no. “Fine. But don’t get used to it,” she said as she got up. “I’ll be back soon.”


	49. Chapter 49

Maze got back less than an hour later and took two phones out of a bag and handed the white one to Lucifer and the black one to Chloe. “I had them set up on your account, activated, and the backups restored,” she told him. 

“Thank you, Mazikeen,” Lucifer said with a grateful nod. 

“Yeah. Thanks Maze,” Chloe said giving her a hug which she returned. 

“And on that note, we should get going and let you rest,” Ella said getting up, and everyone filed out, happy that their friends were back safe, but Linda still worried about Amenadiel. 

Once they were alone again, Chloe went to start cleaning up. Lucifer groaned as he tried to get up. “Here let me help.”

Chloe turned and pushed him back down. “No.” she said clearly. “Lucifer you’ve spent three days carrying us across the entire world. You’ve earned a chance to rest. We can handle cleaning up,” she told him. Trixie nodded and went to start cleaning up her room. A lot of stuff had gotten knocked over in her struggle when they took her. It didn’t take her long though before she joined her mother in the living area. 

Chloe made sure to keep Trixie away from any glass, but otherwise let her help clean up. Lucifer was partially watching them and partially watching the television. When he saw Trixie nearly in tears cleaning up the pieces of the piano, he said, “It’s fine urchin. I’ll have another one here in the next day or two. In fact, I’ll go ahead and make the call now.” When she nodded happily he called the music store and ordered another piano and they promised that they could deliver it tomorrow when he offered a rather large sum of money to facilitate a Sunday deliver. “See? Problem solved.” 

She ran over and hugged him. “Thanks Dad. You’re the best.” 

He smiled and hugged her back even as he said, “You’re hardly the only one who’ll benefit from it, miscreant.” 

She giggled and replied. “I know. But you at least can go downstairs any play anytime you want.” 

“That’s true, but it’s far more convenient to have one up here too,” he pointed out as she let him go and went back to cleaning up. “Make me a list of anything that needs to be repaired or replaced and I’ll take care of it.”

“My TV and stereo got broke, but I think the speakers and surround sound are okay. And one of the drawers on my nightstand won’t go back in,” Trixie offered and Lucifer nodded, making a mental note. 

“In here, other than the piano, the glass behind the bar broke and the railing came off a section on the front,” Chloe added. “Oh and the balcony doors obviously.” 

Lucifer chuckled. “It’s not the first time. I tend to keep the glassmakers in business as much as the music store,” he joked. 

“Do you have any plywood or plastic sheeting or anything I can put over the balcony door until we can get it fixed?” Chloe asked. 

“If you go downstairs and ask Doug, he can show you where it is in the storeroom. I doubt there’s any plywood, but there should be plenty of plastic sheeting,” he told her. 

It was another two hours before the penthouse was clean and closed off from the environment again, and Chloe sat down next to Lucifer and said, “I think an hour or so in the hot tub would help those muscles of yours hmm?” 

“Can I watch TV in here?” Trixie asked. 

“Sure, Monkey,” Chloe told her as she helped Lucifer to his feet, into the bedroom, stripped naked, and then into the hot tub on the side balcony off the bedroom. She hung up two large bath towels, sufficient to cover them appropriately should they be needed, before stripping down herself and climbing in next to him. Unlike most of the time they used the hot tub, they did not actually have sex this time, simply because Lucifer wasn’t feeling up to it, not that he would ever admit that, but they did get plenty of cuddling in. 

When the timer went off an hour later, Chloe climbed out before helping Lucifer out and into his shorts and then bed. She handed him the TV remote and promised to be in a little later. She made a quick dinner and the three of them had a ‘picnic’ in Lucifer’s bed. Later on, Trixie, predictably, was back in their bed, too scared to go to her own again. Chloe just hoped that she would be okay at school this week. She had already missed last week and she was going to have to take her in Monday morning and come up with some kind of explanation for that. Maybe some form of the truth would work. She would have to think on that for a bit. After the school would be the explanations to the lieutenant at the precinct which would be even worse. 

Sunday was spent lounging around the penthouse. Lucifer was still a bit sore, but was moving around much better now after a morning dip in the hot tub. They mostly played board games and watched TV all day. 

Monday morning, while Chloe took Trixie to school, calling the station and letting them know that she would be back but late, Lucifer took the opportunity to make some calls and schedule the repairs. One rush job fee later and the damage would be repaired by the time they got home tonight. One more phone call had a new TV, stereo, and nightstand for Trixie being delivered this afternoon as well. Lucifer left one of the spare keys downstairs with the cleaning crew to let the workmen and delivery men up, and had just enough time to meet Chloe at the station when she got there. 

He met her in the parking lot and they were immediately called into the lieutenant’s office. Chloe knew it wouldn’t go over well, but had come to the realization that as much of the truth as she could tell would be the only way to play this. There really was no other excuse for disappearing for almost a week without a word. 

After she had told as much of the story as she could, the lieutenant looked at them both for a long moment before saying. “So let me get this straight. You were kidnapped, but you can say by who, or to where, or how you got away. You also don’t want to file a report or look for the people who kidnapped you. Do I have that about right?” she asked. 

Chloe winced, knowing how it sounded, but not having a better idea. “Okay, just one more question then.” When she nodded, the lieutenant asked. “Do I look like an idiot to you?” 

Lucifer tried the charm approach. “No, actually you look quite lovely…”

“Shut up,” she snapped, and Lucifer closed his mouth and gave Chloe a look and a shrug that said, ‘I tried’. “I like you Decker, and you have an impressive record, but I can’t have a detective on staff that I can’t trust and who just disappears for weeks at a time.” 

Chloe felt tears welling up in her eyes as she nodded. “I understand,” she said weakly. 

Lucifer took a deep breath and made a decision. Mostly anyway. He turned to Chloe and asked, “Darling, how important is this job to you?”

“Very,” she told him confused. “Why do you…” it dawned on her what he was planning and her eyes widened. “Lucifer, are you sure?” 

“Your happiness is far more important to me than /my/ secret,” he stressed the word my so that she would know he wasn’t intending to out them both.

“Only if you’re really sure. I can be happy without this job, and I don’t want you to feel pressured,” she told him. 

“I know, dearest. I don’t feel pressured. It’s not like I actually /try/ to keep it a secret anyway,” he pointed out before turning to the lieutenant. “You see, lieutenant. I actually am the Devil. The original Lucifer. The rebellious angel sent to rule hell for all eternity…well until I quit anyway.” 

“Uh-huh. If you’re angling for a psych eval that won’t save your job,” she told Chloe. 

“I can prove it to you,” Lucifer told her, motioning Chloe to close the blinds and she did so. They were both completely aware of the lieutenant placing one hand on her gun. They were making her nervous. “Now…Don’t be alarmed. I am still the same charming rogue I always have been,” he told her and she looked at him skeptically but motioned him to hurry it up. The quicker she could be done with this farce the sooner she could start looking for a new detective. 

Lucifer looked at her for a long moment but nothing happened and he sighed and looked at Chloe. “I seem to have lost my devil face again.” 

“It’s okay, Lucifer. We can just go,” Chloe said, trying not to cry. 

“No, it’s not okay. I do have another bit of proof I can offer, but I can’t be held responsible if I break something. This office is rather cramped.” 

“Just hurry it up and get out so I can get on with my day,” the lieutenant lost her patience. 

Lucifer nodded and let his wings spring free, knocking a few things down in the process. The lieutenant was so startled that the hand on her gun automatically came up and she shot him in the shoulder, staring in shock when he barely flinched. “Well that wasn’t nice,” he pouted putting his wings away.


	50. Chapter 50

The lieutenant collected herself relatively quickly, before they walked out at least and sat back down behind her desk. “Okay…so you’re really…the devil…fine…what does that have to do with last week?” 

“Well, as you can imagine, my father and I don’t have the best relationship…”

“You father as in…God,” she clarified in disbelief. 

“The one and only,” Lucifer told her. “Well there is a lot of family politics and stuff involved, but long story short, he sent some of the other angels to kidnap the detective and her offspring and I had to bargain for their release. He dumped us in the middle of the dessert in Africa when he was done with us, most likely out of spite and it took a few days for me to fly us all back here.”

“Fly like…on your wings…” 

“Precisely. Didn’t exactly have time to stop and grab our passports while being abducted unfortunately,” he told her. 

“Okay…so…” she kept trying to recover her balance. “You couldn’t call because you were kidnapped, but what about when you got back in…Africa?” 

“The Silver City…heaven as you call it…tends to fry electronics,” Lucifer told her, pulling his phone out of his pocket. “See? New phone.”

“Right…Okay…I…I think I need some time to wrap my head around this and you likely need a little more time to recover from your…ordeal…so take the day off. We can talk again tomorrow.” 

“Thank you Lieutenant,” Chloe said gratefully, but feeling the familiar feeling of guilt welling up inside her. 

“Oh and just so I’m aware…does anyone else know about…you?” she asked. 

“Just Ella and Detective douche here.” 

“He means Dan,” Chloe cut him off to clarify. 

“And my therapist,” he finished. 

“The devil has a therapist,” the lieutenant said quietly to herself shaking her head. “Okay. Right. See you tomorrow,” she said in dismissal. 

“Well, it looks like we get to be there to direct the construction after all, darling,” Lucifer drawled as they walked out of the precinct. 

“Yep. Seems like it,” she said weakly. 

“Are you all right?” he asked as he stopped walking and took her hand. 

“Yeah. Just…worried about how tomorrow is gonna go. I got a reprieve, but I might still be fired. 

“I doubt it, detective. If anything, I am likely to be fired,” he told her. 

“And that’s even worse. I /like/ working with you Lucifer,” she told him. 

“And I like working with you, detective, but if it is a choice between me getting fired or both of us, I took the best option. You’ll still have the option of quitting if you can’t stomach working without me, and then we can just work together at Lux. Perhaps expand my holdings. The sky’s the limit, but I know how much this job means to you and I couldn’t let you lose it without a fight.” 

Chloe grabbed him and pulled him into a kiss for that. “You are far too good to me, Lucifer Morningstar.” 

Lucifer grinned. “Only because you make me so, Chloe Morningstar,” he replied playfully, swatting her behind. “Come on. Ride with me and we can pick up your car tomorrow.” 

They returned to the penthouse, just as the work crew was arriving to start the repairs, so they let them up and pointed out what needed to be done before heading downstairs so they wouldn’t be in the way. Lucifer waited outside for the furniture delivery when the time came so that he could direct them to the external elevator entrance so they wouldn’t have to come up through the now open club and once everything was set up, he talked Chloe into going back downstairs. “You need to wind down and destress, detective and there are still a few hours until the urchin will be home, so this is the perfect time.” 

The next morning they went back to the precinct, getting there on time this time without the need to detour by Trixie’s school, and went straight to the lieutenant’s office. “Okay, so I think I’ve got a handle on all this now, and I’d be glad to have you both back to work.” 

“Just like that?” Lucifer asked amazed. “You’re going to let the devil work with the police?” 

She shook her head. “Lucifer, I’ve known you for about a year and change, both before you left and since you got back. Not to mention the near constant stories about you from everyone in the building. If you’re evil, then I’m the Queen of England. Are you a bad influence? Yes. Do you go by the book? No. But you’re effective. And more importantly you care. About the job, about the victims, and about justice, so yes. If I can have the devil on our side, I’m damn well going to take it.” 

He gaped at her for a moment and she broke him out of it by handing them a case. “Go on then. Get to work.” Lucifer laughed and gave her a mocking salute before following Chloe out, not noticing that she was walking a little more stiffly than usual, since his mind was still trying to wrap around that conversation. 

It ended up being a simple case and they got the guy a little after lunch. Lucifer had already done his thing and he was spilling all to Chloe when Lucifer’s phone rang and he stepped out to answer it. Chloe’s had rung a moment ago, but she had ignored it. 

“Hi, Lucifer, I just tried to reach Chloe but…” Linda’s voice came from the other side. 

“She’s interrogating a suspect,” Lucifer told her. “What’s wrong?” 

“Well I just wanted to ask if she thought that Trixie might be up to babysitting Charlie for a few hours when she gets home. If you’re going to be at the club I mean in case something happens. My sitter had a family emergency and I have a few appointments this afternoon that I really shouldn’t reschedule and since Maze wont’ be back until tonight…” 

“Trixie actually has band practice after school today, but I can watch him,” Lucifer offered. “We’re just finishing this up and then the detective will be working on paperwork for the rest of the day so I’m not needed here.”

“You’re…offering to babysit,” Linda said incredulously. “You.” 

“Yes. I am. If you trust me to do so,” Lucifer added. 

“Of course I trust you. Assuming that you are aware that toddlers should drink alcohol or do drugs or have strippers…” she said mostly joking. 

“Well there goes my plans for the afternoon,” Lucifer teased. “I will be fine,” he assured her more seriously. “Are you at home or the office? I can come pick him up.” 

“We’re at the office right now. I have about half an hour before my next appointment.” 

“I’ll be there in less than that then,” he promised and headed back into interrogation to let Chloe know that he was heading out and she nodded. 

He made it to Linda’s office in twenty minutes and picked up Charlie, the diaper bag, and the schedule that Linda had written out. “He’s already had his nap, but not a snack, so he’ll need one. There are cheerios in the diaper bag for him. He’s eating mostly solid foods now, but if you have meat for dinner, make sure it’s cut up into really small pieces,” she told him and Lucifer nodded at the instructions. “I’ll come by and pick him up with I’m done for the day, probably around seven. Thank you so much for this Lucifer,” she told him. “I’m just so lost with Amenadiel…” she trailed off. 

“It’s okay, doctor. I’m here to help,” he promised her and headed out as her client arrived. 

It took him a good ten minutes to figure out how the seat he was in would strap into his car, but he managed and got back to the penthouse. He sat Charlie at the coffee table and gave him the bowl of cheerios and turned on the television to some insipid children’s program before going to play the piano for a while, making sure to keep one eye on the child as he played. 

Two hours later, he was run ragged and more frazzled than ever. His hair was standing on end from running his hands through it so much and he was covered in all manner of bodily fluids. To make matters worse, he smelled something that wasn’t at all pleasant and the look on his face as he changed the diaper would have rivalled the one when he was thrown up on by Trixie and it only got worse as the little cretin urinated on him. 

Not long after the diaper incident he finally gave up on keeping anything else on the child and let him run around in only the diaper. He had already redressed the infernal thing five times. It was another two hours before Chloe came home and she had a guest. “Hey Lucifer, Maze showed up with her bounty just as I was leaving so I invited her for…dinner…Why is Charlie here? Where’s Linda?” she finished confused. 

“Her babysitter cancelled at the last minute, so I’m babysitting,” he said the last word with distaste. 

Maze laughed. “You? Babysitting? Linda must have been desperate.” 

Chloe bit her lip to keep from laughing as well as Lucifer chased the toddler who was, for the fifth time that day, making a break for his bedroom. “Are you doing okay?” she asked, managing to only let a hint of amusement slip through. She took in his current look of half undone shirt, mussed up hair, and more than a few spots of she didn’t want to know what all over him. 

“I am fine,” he said before wrinkling his nose and lifting the child and sniffing. “But I do believe that it has defecated…again,” he said wearily. 

Chloe couldn’t hold back her snicker this time, but jumped to the rescue. “I’ll take care of this one,” she offered, getting the hint that he had already changed at least one diaper if not more and the yellow spot on the front of his shirt was explained. 

Lucifer considered protesting, since he was supposed to be the babysitter and didn’t want to be remiss in his duties, but the memory of the last time, stopped him. “Very well,” he said handing the thing over and going to wash his hands for what must have been the hundredth time today. He had given up on changing clothes after the third time and just intended to take a nice long shower once it was gone. 

He missed how Maze was looking at him oddly and before she could say anything the elevator dinged as Trixie got home and set her saxophone down. She took one look at Lucifer and asked worriedly, “Are you okay, Dad?”

Maze was the one who answered the question. “He’s been…babysitting today,” she said with a chuckle. 

“Babysitting who…Charlie!” she cried happily as her mother came out carrying the toddler and rushed over to take him. 

“I was intending to have dinner ready when you got home, but I was…otherwise occupied,” Lucifer said apologetically. 

“That’s okay. Toddlers can be a handful even when you’re used to it. We can just order in,” Chloe told him, declining to mention that he’d had the diaper on Charlie backwards. Since Trixie had Charlie occupied, Chloe grabbed the phone to call in some food and told Lucifer, “You can go take a shower and change if you want. We can help from here on in.” 

“Yes. I think I will. Thank you, darling,” he said gladly making his escape. 

When he came back out thirty minutes later, looking as immaculate as usual, the food had just arrived and they all sat down to eat. Lucifer grabbed Charlie’s food first though and started cutting it into small pieces as Linda had told him. 

“Okay, I can’t take this anymore. What is /with/ you lately, Lucifer?” Maze asked. 

“What do you mean?” he asked. 

“Ever since you got back you’ve been handing out compliments, not squirming away from affection, and now offering to babysit? You hate kids!” 

“I offered Amenadiel anything he wished if he would help me get the detective and the child back. All he asked was that I take care of the doctor and his spawn if he didn’t come back. I will never go back on a promise,” he told her, ignoring the first part of her statement. He may be willing to open up a little bit more, but he was not willing to talk about it. 

With the ruckus between the toddler and the almost argument between Maze and Lucifer, no one noticed the elevator or Linda stepping out of it until she gasped at Lucifer’s words, tears filling her eyes. She knew that he wasn’t fond of hugs, but in this case she couldn’t hold herself back and wrapped him in one, not having the words to express what she was feeling at the moment. 

After a moment’s hesitation he returned the hug and then she stepped back. “You look good. Did everything go okay?” she asked, pretending the hug hadn’t happened, knowing that he would be more comfortable that way. 

Maze laughed and even Chloe snickered. “He looks good because we got here almost an hour ago and sent him to clean up,” Maze offered. 

“I had not anticipated how…” he turned a dozen words over in his head before he settled on, “difficult…it could be. The urchin is not nearly so…” he couldn’t think of another word so just trailed off. 

“The younger the child the more difficult they are,” Chloe told him. 

“Yes. I’ve noticed. However, should you need me again…” he told Linda. 

“I’ll let you know. Thank you, Lucifer. Really,” she said, tears welling up in her eyes again.


	51. Chapter 51

Linda joined them for the rest of dinner before she and Maze left. Trixie went to play on the piano for a while and Chloe went to cuddle on the couch with Lucifer. Now that he didn’t have any more distractions though, he quickly noticed that something was off with her. “Something is bothering you,” he said more than asked. 

“It’s not important,” she said quickly. 

“Obviously it’s important to you if it’s bothering you,” he pointed out. When she didn’t seem to want to say anything he said, “If you truly don’t wish to talk about it I won’t force you to, but I do feel the need to point out that you are the one always telling me that we need to talk things through when they are bothering us.” 

“You’re right. It’s just…we’ve already talked this out before,” she told him, getting up and heading out to the balcony. It had become her thinking spot as much as it had been his. He got up and followed her, just as she always did him when he came to brood, and stood next to her, leaning on the rail and watching the city as he waited for her to speak. “I just…can’t stop thinking about what the lieutenant said today about you not being evil. And how Ella and Dan reacted. And Trixie. Every time someone takes it so well it reminds me how I took it. I know you better than anyone and I was the only one that flipped out. Worse than flipped out. I used your feelings for me against you and lied to you, betrayed you, tried to kill you, but all these people who barely know you can see what I didn’t. What does that say about me?” she asked, tears streaming down her cheeks by the end. 

Lucifer sighed and wrapping his arm around her waist, pulling her close. “You know, I talked a lot with Doctor Linda about all that and she had a theory that it might help you to know,” he told her. 

“What kind of theory?” she asked, really hoping it would make her feel better because she felt like she was going to shatter into pieces. 

“Well there are a lot of factors, so I’ll just go through them one at a time. First, when you found out what I was, you saw me standing over a dead body. That I killed. No matter that he was a bad guy and trying to kill us both, that’s still a scary image.” 

“I know that, but I’m a cop. I’m used to scary images. And I’ve killed my share of people in the line of duty to save myself and others,” she told him. 

“I know, dearest, but that’s not the only thing. You’re also the most pragmatic of the people who know. The rest of them believed in something greater than humanity, but you didn’t. You believed in science and things that could be explained and measured. It was a major shock to your system.” 

“That doesn’t make it right,” she protested. 

“No, but that’s not all either. I’ve saved the biggest factors for last. When you found out what I was, you had already fallen in love with me. Or at least were on the way to doing so. We never quite finished that particular conversation,” he chuckled. “But there was definitely something there. Which meant that you had a much higher stake in it than anyone else did. Love is terrifying by itself. Believe me, I know. Then to find out that the person you’re in love with is the devil…that has to have an effect.” 

She considered for a moment and nodded slowly. “But you still forgave me. Even though I used your love against you.” 

“Yes. I did. And I always will. Mainly because of the next and last fact. You were manipulated. Had that priest not found you and started filling your head with lies and scaring you half to death, you probably would have taken the time, come to terms with things, and come back to talk things out. But he twisted you all up in knots and used you to get to me. He convinced you that what you were doing was right. He convinced you that you were trying to save the world. He was the bad guy, Chloe. Not you. Never you.” He had turned her face to him with his hand on her cheek for the last part, willing her to see in his eyes that he didn’t blame her. “You need to forgive yourself, dearest,” he finished softly, remembering what she had told him so long ago. 

“I don’t know how,” she whispered back echoing his word from that day. “And I’m not sure I want to.” 

“But if you don’t, my love, it could come between us, and that would only hurt us both,” he told her seriously. 

She sniffled as he used his thumbs to wipe the tears from her cheeks and she nodded. “I’ll try,” she promised. 

“And that is all I can ask,” he said before he kissed her softly. 

They stood there just holding each other for a long time, before she felt strong enough to continue. “Okay. Now it’s your turn to tell me what’s been bothering you.” 

Lucifer sighed. He really didn’t want to go there, but he knew he had no right not to. Not now. And she knew it. “A few things. I just can’t stop thinking about how I was downstairs, partying and drinking and dancing while you were up here being attacked and abducted. I should have been here. I should have known. Felt something. I failed you both.”

“No, Lucifer,” Chloe said softly, her heart breaking for him. “Maze was just upset. Don’t let what she said…”

“She didn’t say anything I didn’t already know, detective. What I knew the second I found the house destroyed and you gone.” 

“I understand why you feel that way. I might feel the same in your position. But that doesn’t mean that you’re right. You can’t protect us every moment of every day. For one thing you’re only one person. What if Trixie had been taken from school or band practice or a friend’s house and you were with me at the time? Then say you ran off to save her and they came and took me. You can’t be everywhere at once and you can’t protect us all yourself.” 

“But she wasn’t elsewhere. You were together and I wasn’t there,” he said plaintively. 

“Because you are a person and you have every right to have your own life. You have wants and needs and /desires/ just like anyone else. It isn’t your job to be with us every second of every day.” She could see that she wasn’t getting through to him so she tried a different way. “How would you feel if I gave up everything I wanted to do and just followed you around to keep you safe?” She saw him start to understand. “Just think about that, okay. You do everything you reasonably can to keep us safe and happy. You put locks in, you check in with us, you protect me while I’m at work just as I protect you. There really is nothing more that you can do without crossing a line into creepy stalker,” she said with a little levity. When he nodded, she could tell that he didn’t quite believe her yet, but that she had gotten him thinking and he would get there. That or they could have this talk again in a few days and she would try a different approach. “You said there were a few things bothering you. What else?” 

“Amenadiel,” he said simply. Chloe looked at him waiting for more. “It’s my fault he’s gone. I asked him to help me save my family and cost him his in the process. And the worst part was that I handled it without him.”

“First of all, you don’t know that,” Chloe told him. “There were a good few hours that none of us know what was going on. For all any of us know he talked to your father in that time and tried to convince him to have mercy and that’s why he ended up doing it. Secondly, you’re doing it again. Taking responsibility for things that you aren’t responsible for. You didn’t force him to go. He made that choice, knowing the risks and the fact that he asked you to help out Linda and Charlie proves that he did consider them before agreeing. You can’t take responsibility for his choices.”

“But I’m the one who asked him to. I asked him to make that choice. I asked him to choose my family over his own. What does that make me?” 

“It makes you a good husband and a good father. That you will overturn any rock to protect us. And it makes him a good brother for agreeing to help you. Don’t take that away from him by shouldering the blame. He helped you because he wanted to. Because you needed it. And I don’t doubt that you would do the same for him. Are doing the same for him, even. You’re helping to take care of his family because he’s your brother and he needs you to do what he can’t right now.”

“I still shouldn’t have asked him,” Lucifer said stubbornly. 

“And if you hadn’t it would have hurt his feelings. It would have made him feel like you couldn’t count on him,” she told him. “How would you have felt if someone took Linda and Charlie and he didn’t come to you for help?” 

He sighed heavily. “You’re right. I still feel guilty about it, but I know you’re right.”

“Then you work on forgiving yourself just like I’m working on forgiving myself, okay?” 

“I’ll try,” he promised, pulling her in for a hug and resting his head on hers. 

“And that’s all I can ask.”


	52. Chapter 52

Things quickly went back to their normal routine. Trixie only took about a week before she was able to sleep in her own bed again, but only when Lucifer was there. When he was downstairs or out somewhere, she slept in bed with her mother, and he never had the heart to move her when he came in. He also came upstairs to check on them every hour or so, and Chloe just rolled her eyes fondly at him every time. She knew that he would relax in time, and until then, it wasn’t like it was any hardship for her. 

It was two weeks after they returned before their routine was disrupted again. Lucifer’s phone rang at two am and when he noticed it was Linda calling he quickly answered, already worried. “What’s wrong?”

“I-it’s Amenadiel. He’s back, but he’s in bad shape. I don’t know if I should take him to the hospital…if I can take him to the hospital…or maybe you can help…I’m sorry. I just didn’t know who else to call,” she cried. 

“I’ll be right there,” he promised. When he hung up he noticed Chloe looking at him curiously. “Amenadiel is back but he’s hurt,” he told her. 

“Go on ahead. I’ll wake Trixie and we’ll drive over, but you’ll get there faster if you fly.”

He nodded and ran out the door to the balcony wearing just his shorts, not even bothering to get clothes on and took flight the second he was out the door. Chloe and Trixie were just getting on the road ten minutes later when he arrived at Linda and Amenadiel’s house and he ran right in, thankfully not breaking the door this time. 

He found Amenadiel laying on the couch with Linda fussing over him and he was unconscious. He went over and put a hand on her shoulder and she moved out of the way. Lucifer called his wings back out and plucked a feather, placing it over the large gash on Amenadiel’s head, frowning when nothing happened. “That should be healing him,” Lucifer said confused. “Help me roll him on his side,” he told her and she took his legs while Lucifer rolled the top half and he reached behind him and placed a hand on his back, underneath his ripped shirt and prodded with his power before he sighed sadly and pulled his hand away. “We need to get him to the hospital,” he told Linda. 

“Can they do anything for an angel?” she asked concerned. 

“He’s not an angel anymore,” Lucifer said sadly. “He’s completely human. I can fly him. It’ll be faster, if you want to just meet us there.”

She nodded. “Okay. Yeah. Please.” 

He put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. “I’ll do everything I can to help him. I promise you.”

“Thank you Lucifer,” she said gratefully as he picked up his brother. 

“Can you call Chloe and tell her to detour to the hospital? She’s on her way here.” When Linda agreed to do so, Lucifer went out the door and flew to the hospital, landing in the dark corner by the emergency bay and rushed him inside. The doctors took one look at him and rushed him back while another one started asking him question about what happened and was he family. He told them that he was his brother and that he had just found him like that so he didn’t know what happened. They looked skeptical about them being brothers and Lucifer snapped, “Adoption is a thing okay? We grew up together, were raised by the same parents, he’s my brother.” They just nodded and handed him some paperwork to fill out and made sure to make it clear that he was loaded and would be paying for everything when he handed them over with no insurance. He knew how these places treated people who didn’t have insurance and couldn’t necessarily pay. 

By the time Chloe, Trixie, Linda, and Charlie arrived half an hour later, he had nearly paced a hole in the floor. As soon as he saw her, he pulled Chloe in for a crushing hug. “How is he?” Linda asked worriedly. 

“I don’t know. I haven’t heard anything yet. They’ve been with him for half an hour.” Chloe managed to get him to stop pacing, but he still sat down and clung to her. Trixie climbed in his lap and hugged him tightly too, trying to help him feel better prompting him to cling to her just as strongly. When Linda sat next to him, he reached out and took her hand and she looked at him gratefully. “Oh and when I was filling out the paperwork, I wasn’t sure whether to give him your last name or mine so I went with yours.”

She nodded and gave him a smile that said that he did the right thing and they lapsed into an uneasy silence for a few minutes. It didn’t last long though. Since they had time to kill, Linda tried to make conversation. “Do you know why he’s human now?” she asked Lucifer. 

“I don’t. I have a few guesses but no good ones,” he told her apologetically. 

“But he can become an angel again right? Like he did before when he was human?” 

Lucifer shook his head. “No. He was never human before. He was just falling. His wings were still there, just molted and not usable. His divinity was still there, just weak. Now, he is completely human. There is no trace of divinity in him at all.” Tears started streaming down her face and she couldn’t think of anything else to say. None of them could so they just waited in silence. 

It was another two hours before the doctor came out and called, “Martin?” 

Lucifer jumped up. “Yeah, over here.” The rest of them followed him over. 

“How is he?” Linda asked. 

“Are you all family?” the doctor asked first and Lucifer was getting really annoyed with that question so he answered a little more harshly than he might have. 

“I’m his brother and this is my wife and daughter and that’s his partner and son, so yes we’re all family. Now please tell us how he is.” 

“He has a moderate concussion, a broken arm, a cut on his head that needed stitches, and a few more minor cuts and contusions spread over his body. We want to keep him for a few days to monitor the concussion but there is no reason that he shouldn’t make a full recovery,” the doctor told them. 

“Can we see him?” Chloe asked. 

“Follow me,” he told them and led them to his room. 

Lucifer and Linda were the first to his bedside, and he reached his good hand out to Linda. “I missed you,” he croaked. 

“I missed you too,” she said tears welling up in her eyes. 

“I’m glad to see you okay, brother,” Lucifer told him. 

Amenadiel winced and looked away. “I’m not your brother anymore Lucifer. I’m not celestial anymore. I’m just a simple human.”

Lucifer sighed sadly. “If you don’t want me as a brother anymore after what I asked of you, I understand, but know that I will always consider you my brother.” When he turned to leave, tears shining in his eyes. 

“Lucifer wait,” Amenadiel said firmly. When he stopped, he didn’t turn back around. “That wasn’t what I meant.”

“Then what did you mean?” Lucifer asked. 

“I just meant that I am human now. Completely and permanently. How can we be brothers if we aren’t the same species?”

Lucifer went back over and Linda moved out of the way, sensing that they needed each other more than he needed her right now. “If there is one thing I’ve learned, living among humans, it’s that family is what you make of it.” He put a hand on Amenadiel’s shoulder. “You have been here for me in so many ways these last few years and you risked everything to help me save my family. You will always be my brother. No matter your species.”

Amenadiel nodded and closed his against against the tears that threatened to leak out. “Then I have something I must ask of you, brother.”

“You know that I owe you everything, Amenadiel, and I don’t back out on my debts. Anything you ask for is yours.”

“As my son grows up…he will need someone divine to teach him certain things…” 

“And I will be happy to do so,” Lucifer promised. 

“And when Linda and I grow old and die…” 

“He is my family just as you are.” 

“Then any debt between us is paid,” Amenadiel said softly reaching his hand up to grasp Lucifer’s arm. 

“Do you feel up to telling us what happened?” Chloe asked. 

After I left, I went to the Silver City and everyone was running around frantically. I was trying to get information, to find out where you and Trixie were being held, but before I could get anywhere, there was an uproar coming from the main street. I rushed over and saw Lucifer being dragged through the streets in chains so I followed. I slipped in at the back of the throne room and saw everything that happened there and when they said they were taking you back to earth I tried to follow, but I was grabbed. They weren’t going to let me leave.”

“I’m sorry, brother. I should never have asked you to…”

“Yes. You should have, Lucifer. I’m your brother and that’s what family does for each other,” Amenadiel said clearly. “But anyway, father was apparently very upset because he wouldn’t see anyone for about a week. Then he came to see me in my cell. He asked me why I dared to come back and try to leave again, so I told him. Seeing what he did to you three…I have no love or respect left for him at all and I told him that too. He was…not happy and left again. It was another week before I saw him again and he told me that I had a choice. I could either stay in the Silver City and retake my place there for good, or he would remove my divinity completely and send me back to my family.” 

“But why would he do that?” Lucifer asked. “Why would he let me come back as is but take away your divinity?” 

“You were always his favorite, Lucifer. No matter how much anyone tried to deny it,” Lucifer opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off when Amenadiel continued. “Besides, what you did, at least this time, was accidental and at least partially his fault. I defied a direct order and then tried to hide it by sneaking back out. He said that since he couldn’t trust me not to keep coming back, then he would have to make sure that I couldn’t.” 

Lucifer started to apologize again, but stopped himself. He knew that Amenadiel wouldn’t accept it now any more than he did then. “So he made you human. Then how did you get injured?”

“The celestials that were sent to bring me home weren’t very gentle about it. They dropped me on the roof from about ten feet up, and then I rolled off the roof to the ground,” he told them. 

“They dumped us in the middle of a dessert in Africa. I’m not sure which of us got the rougher ride,” Lucifer told him. 

“How did you get home?” Amenadiel asked curiously. 

“The only way I could. I carried them both. Beatrice on my back and Chloe in my arms. It took a lot longer. Three days actually, but I made it. And so did you.” 

“Father also gave me a message for you. Before I forget,” Amenadiel said already starting to nod off. 

“Then tell me quickly and then we’ll let you get some rest,” Lucifer replied. 

“He said to tell you…as long as none of the three of you ever kill a human, attempt to come to the Silver City, or make any other humans into celestials, he will allow you live your lives here in peace, but if any one of you breaks any of those laws then all three of you will be executed.”

Lucifer nodded. They would just have to be careful. He and Chloe would have to talk about how to make sure she never killed anyone in the line of duty again, even if it meant someone else’s death. If she couldn’t make that choice then she would have to find a new job. He wouldn’t sacrifice all their lives for anything.


	53. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a quick snapshot of the rest of eternity for all our players.

Amenadiel recovered quickly and moved back in with Linda. Now that he was human though, he decided that he needed a real job and Lucifer gladly hired him as a bouncer for Lux. He and Linda never got married and never truly fell in love though they remained lovers for many years, not going their separate ways until Charlie was grown and out on his own. He had always known, since he was old enough to understand, that while his parents loved each other, they were never in love and were mostly just partners in raising him, so he didn’t have the same reaction to them splitting up as some might. Amenadiel remained a bouncer at Lux for the rest of his working life, until his health required him to quit and he died peacefully in his sleep. 

Linda followed not long after, but not before she had declared Lucifer ‘cured’, as he’d put it so long ago. She felt that he was her crowning achievement, even if no one could ever know that she had helped the actual devil become a fully functioning human being. He still had his issues of course, like anyone did. Chief among them, his ‘daddy issues’, but when you had a dad like his it was unavoidable and he had gotten past it. She had actually been the therapist for the entire Morningstar family, Chloe having caved in to Lucifer’s suggestions and starting sessions about a year after their marriage, chief among her issues, her never-ending guilt about what she had done to Lucifer after finding out who he was. It had only gotten worse as more and more things that he’d done for her slipped out in conversations, like killing his brother to save her and literally dying and going to hell to get the antidote for her poison, among other things, but Linda had helped her past it, just like she had helped Lucifer and Trixie past their problems. 

As Charlie grew up, Uncle Lucifer was his favorite family member. Whenever something divine popped up in his life Lucifer was there to help him through it and teach him to control it. And of course, Lucifer was the fun uncle, though he did wait until Charlie was eighteen to start taking him to strip clubs and teach him how to really party, though Charlie never quite took after Lucifer in that respect. He did enjoy a good time, but not all the time like Lucifer had before he settled down. Charlie ended up with Amenadiel’s no longer active gift of time, and of course it cropped up at the worst possible time when he hit his teen years, but thankfully it wasn’t strong enough to affect more than the immediate area until his mid-twenties when he was a little more responsible. He never married or had children of his own, though it was unclear whether he could at all given that he was half celestial and half human. 

Ella had continued as a forensic scientist for the LAPD for another two decades before it became obvious that she wasn’t aging, and that had caused a fuss among those ‘in the know’. It seemed that the little bit of divinity she had soaked up from Lucifer during their experiment, while not enough to make her a celestial or give her wings, or even make her invulnerable, was enough to make her immortal, and they all became much more protective of her after that. She could still be killed as easily as any human, after all. There were far too many questions at the precinct about her lack of aging though, so Lucifer, as he did with everyone he cared about, took care of her. She was still interested in science so he bought her a lab, furnished it, and funded whatever research she wanted. As long as it was safe. She ended up marrying five times over the course of eternity, but never wanted children. Her family life had never been very good and that had turned her off the idea. Not to mention she knew that she would outlive any of her children and didn’t want to set herself up for that kind of pain. 

Dan had reunited with Trixie after about three months of estrangement when she called him and agreed to a monthly dinner and weekly phone call and he gladly accepted whatever he could get. He didn’t begrudge her for calling Lucifer dad or changing her name. He was just glad to get a chance to fix his mistakes with his daughter. After about a year of good behavior on his part, helped along by Chloe telling Dan exactly what Trixie’s complaints were, Trixie even agreed to expand their contact and they had weekly dinners and frequent phone calls. Dan never remarried and worked as a detective until he was killed in the line of fire when Trixie was twenty-five. 

Maze continued working as a bounty hunter for the LAPD for the next ten years before she moved on. People weren’t quite talking yet about her lack of aging but she knew they would, so she headed to a different city to do the same job. Every ten years she would move on, but she always came back to LA after she’d been gone for about twenty years and just pretend to keep being her daughter. Eventually ‘Mazikeen Smith’ became as much of a title as a name, and more of a legend than anything else. No matter where she was she always kept in touch with the family, especially Trixie and came to as many of her concerts as she could manage. 

Trixie got offers to play music professionally starting from the time she was fourteen, but her mother insisted that she finish high school first. She knew how much she missed out on as a child actor and having tutors on the road and she didn’t want Trixie to regret the same things she did. When she complained, Chloe just pointed out that unlike most people, she had eternity to follow her dreams and she should enjoy her childhood while she could, so Trixie grudgingly accepted her mother’s order. Lucifer had been all for her doing whatever she wanted in that regard, but when he remembered how Chloe had acted about the high school reunion and missing her prom, he gave her his full backing and Trixie stayed in school. She graduated about middle of the road in grades, but got a full music scholarship to Juliard, which she considered taking, but eventually declined. She realized the same thing that her piano teacher had. What she did couldn’t be taught. Not really. There were useful nuggets here and there, but one useful lesson out of a thousand wasn’t worth wasting her time. Her old piano teacher had taught her enough of those useful lessons anyway. 

Piano was always Trixie’s favorite instrument, and only partially because of her Dad and all the time they spent playing together, even hundreds of years later, but she ended up being master level in every known instrument due to her gift in music. That didn’t mean that she just picked them up and played them perfectly immediately. She always had to learn the basics the hard way, but once she got them down, she never needed another lesson again. She became a world renowned pianist by the time she was twenty and as such was often travelling. Lucifer and Chloe tried to go to as many as they could, but given that she was usually playing once every week or two all around the world, that wasn’t as many as they would like, but they made sure to make a minimum of two per year, usually taking a vacation in whatever city she was playing in around the concerts. She also took at least a month each year off to spend with her family, though she did end up playing Lux often when she did and those nights attendance was off the charts. Her concerts were always sold out and very expensive so when she played for just a small cover charge to get in, the place was always packed and the Morningstar name became known for music in more than just LA.   
That wasn’t to say that music was the only thing in Trixie’s life. She did end up falling in love, but knew that the chances of her having children were slim to none. She could only have a child with another celestial and since they were cut off from heaven the only option would have been Charlie, who had always been more like a brother to her. That or she could fall enough to be human enough to conceive, but she enjoyed her existence far too much to do that. She and her human husband did adopt though, and she never fell in love again after losing him. 

Chloe continued as a detective with the LAPD for another ten years, and only twice did she need to let someone die to avoid killing someone. Both times tore her apart with guilt though, but she worked through it with Linda’s help. It was after the second time that she quit her job though. She just couldn’t take having to do it again. After she quit, she helped Lucifer run the club for a while, but he could tell she wasn’t truly happy. She needed to be helping people. That was just who she was, so he built a shelter for abused women and children for her to run which is where she finally discovered her gift. It was inspiration. She was able to inspire people to want something better in their lives, though she could probably have done the opposite though if she ever wanted to, but she never did. Lucifer told her that he wasn’t surprised. She had inspired him to be a better man after all. 

Lucifer continued to work with the LAPD as long as Chloe did, but when she quit, he did too and just focused on running Lux. Once it had all of his attention it became bigger and better than ever and he had expanded into two of the nearby buildings within twenty years. Unlike most jobs, there was enough turnover and not enough attention so that no one noticed that the owner and his wife never aged and it was the same with the shelter. No one ever stayed long enough to notice or care. Lucifer ended up teaching Chloe and Trixie how to fly at the same time, since Chloe always stayed so busy at work and it wasn’t something that could be done an hour here or an hour there since they needed to find secluded locations, but when Trixie’s wings came in on her sixteenth birthday, Chloe took some of the leave time that she had accumulated and Lucifer took them both out to the desert and spent a month teaching them how to fly. He did the same thing with Charlie on his sixteenth birthday years later too. 

Lucifer and Chloe remained married for the rest of time, neither of them even considering taking the out they offered each other once they realized that they could have eternity, and they were still just as in love millennia later as they had been the day they were married. That’s not to say that they didn’t have their problems. Some caused by Lucifer’s massive guilt complex, some caused by her stubbornness, and some caused by circumstances themselves, but everything they had been through early in their relationship had stayed with them and neither of them wanted to risk losing the other, so they always managed to talk things out eventually. 

They never did have any more children. Lucifer never warmed up to them enough to want one of his own, though eventually he would have relented to make Chloe happy if she had wanted one badly enough, but she never cared much one way or the other, especially since she had all the children at the shelter to mother, so Trixie remained their only child, and once Linda and Amenadiel had passed, Trixie, Charlie, and Ella were their only family. With very few exceptions, those being for Trixie’s one husband, and Ella’s three husbands and two wives, not at the same time, they never told any other humans about the divine.


End file.
